The death of a Southland man while trying to dispose of old explosives in Southland has prompted a warning from the coroner after he struggled to get disposal advice.
Donald Woodford, 79, was a fencing contractor who had previously used explosives to blow up rocks in the ground to create fence post holes.
After he upgraded his equipment and no longer needed explosives, he in 2023 tried to return Powergel to the store where he purchased it, but staff would not accept it.
He then approached police, who recommended Donald return it to the manufacturer.
His wife Adele Woodford said, by this point, the family was at a loss with what to do with the explosives, and the material remained in a shed.
Both Donald and Adele had plans to move the shed to store firewood, and Adele had reminded Donald the Powergel would need to be disposed of before the shed could be moved. The couple discussed a plan to move the explosives on January 30, 2024.
As a child, Donald had helped his father build a hut at Waterloo Station, which the family had visited ever since. Although it was not explicitly discussed, Adele understood this is where Donald planned to deal with the explosives from the shed.
At about 2.45pm on January 31, 2024, Donald talked about the food he had planned to take to the hut, as he left, he told Adele he would be back after 1pm the following day.
When Donald did not returned as expected, Adele became concerned, and contacted his brother, Mark Woodford. Mark then travelled to the hut to look for him, and found Donald's ute with the door open.
Donald was found lying dead nearby, about a metre ad a half away from a large hole in the ground.
Police officers were called and found several half-exploded detonators near Donald's body.
It was found Donald's death was due to blast and shrapnel injuries from an explosive device, and his death was an accident.
Coroner's recommendation
The Coroner said Donald had made inquiries about how to safely dispose of the Powergel, but "neither line of inquiry was helpful".
"Woodford decided to destroy it by detonating it in a remote area. Unfortunately, this resulted in his death."
The New Zealand Defence Force bomb squad attended the scene, and ensured the remaining explosives were safely detonated.
As part of the findings, the bomb squad advised police that commercial explosives were "inherently dangerous, even in trained hands".
It noted explosives, commercial or otherwise, deteriorate over time and become "less stable" and "a lot more volatile, becoming more sensitive to heat, shock, and friction as they age".
Detonators especially pose a high risk as they are highly sensitive when produced," it added.
"Typical injuries from detonators functioning while being held is severe damage to hands with the loss of one or more fingers and high chance of fragmentation injury to the eyes."
The Coroner said contacting the NZDF when explosives are found and need to be safely detonated "is the preferred approach".
"However, this was not the guidance given to Mr Woodford when he made inquiries about disposing of the Powergel. Had he taken advice from the NZDF Mr Woodford would have not tried to detonate the Powergel himself and the tragic consequence could have been avoided," the Coroner said.
Donald's family have expressed a desire for others to learn from this tragedy to avoid it happening again, the Coroner added.
The Coroner then advised police to remind all staff about what to do when a member of the public has unused explosives and was asking how to dispose of them. This included contacting the NZDF E Squadron (Explosive Ordnance Disposal), so arrangements can be made for safe disposal.
Police manager of aviation, maritime and border tactical operations, Darren Russell, responded and said the recommendation was noted.
"Police has developed guidance that will be accessible to all staff via an application on police-issued devices. This guidance sets out the required actions when members of the public report possessing disused explosives. In addition, the standard operating procedures used by Police Communications staff for managing such reports have been reviewed to ensure they remain current and fit for purpose.
"Once the guidance is published within the application, an advisory notice will be posted on the police intranet. This notice will inform staff of the updated guidance and reinforce the required actions when reports of disused explosives are received."
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