The death of a four-year-old girl, who was struck by a falling scrum machine in 2018, was preventable, the coroner has found.
Karlissa Karepa-Cowell died when a scrum machine she had been playing on overbalanced and fell on her at Manurewa Rugby Club in December 2018.
In her findings, Coroner Katharine Greig said the accident was preventable if the scrum machine been stored safely and the rugby club had recognised it as a hazard.
Greig consulted with New Zealand Rugby about how the importance of safe storage of scrum machines when not in use could be brought to the attention of rugby organisations and clubs around the country.
In response, NZR have created guidelines for the safe storage of scrum machines, to be distributed among rugby clubs, schools and organisations.
In the guidelines, NZR strongly recommended scrum machines when not in use must be stored in a way that cannot be accessed by the public, or, if there is no storage shed available, must be fenced or padlocked off with clear signage identifying it as a danger.
Greig was satisfied with the guidelines, which are set to come into effect immediately, and hoped they would ensure the "absolute tragedies" of deaths such as Karepa-Cowell's did not happen again in New Zealand.
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