Lincoln Kidd told his girlfriend and mother about perceived safety issues on the forestry block where he died. Source: Stuff NZ
And the man who hired Paul Robert Burr’s company to clear the block said he never saw Burr provide any hazard management plan specific to the block.
Mr Kidd was 20 years old when a tree felled by Burr fatally crushed him on December 19, 2013.
Mr Burr, 47, is on trial in the High Court in Palmerston North, charged with manslaughter in relation to the incident. He also faces charges laid by WorkSafe New Zealand.
Mr Kidd’s girlfriend Jessica Hearfield, in a statement she read to the court on Tuesday, said they had been together for about three years. They were getting ready to buy a house, and had talked about marriage and children.
Mr Kidd had been around trees “his whole life”, chopping firewood while at school for work before getting into forestry.
He joined Burr’s company in September 2013 to get more forestry experience, and was working with his hunting buddy Ray Pakau, she said.
He would often work on the weekend to get enough trees out for quota, and they were in a rush at the time of the incident to get as many trees out as possible, she said.
Mr Kidd had issues with safety at the site, but Hearfield could not expand on that. Mr Kidd’s mother Leslie Kidd also read her police statement, in which she was more specific about her son’s opinion of safety practices on the block.
He said there were no signs on the block, and nothing showing health and safety messages for visitors.
Lincoln Kidd had also talked about two incidents when power lines were brought down on the block.
“I remember saying to Lincoln ‘once was an accident, but twice was just pure stupidity’,” Lesley Kidd said.
December 19 was to be the last day they could get logs picked up by trucks, and they were in a rush to get trees down, she said.
Lincoln Kidd had not drunk any alcohol the night before his death, and was not a big drinker, she said.
The court also heard from Timothy Hunt, who hired Burr’s company to clear the block.
Mr Hunt said he and Burr went through the block about four months before the December start date for a site inspection to check for hazards.
He and Burr pointed out various hazards, including power lines going over the track to the block, a section of the track that became boggy, mounds of mulch left by a different tree felling crew and fences running through the block.
While they pointed out those hazards, no record was kept on the day, Mr Hunt said.
Mr Burr did have safety documentation in his truck, and Mr Hunt said he also saw a safety audit made at a previous site by another company.
Mr Hunt said he thought the job could take a few weeks, but he never put production pressure on Burr. That was because the owners would not have to pay more if Burr took longer.
