Three Samoan Seasonal Workers Killed by Inadequate Median Barriers, Coroner Finds

Three Samoan seasonal workers are being mourned across Aotearoa and Samoa after a crash a coroner says could have been prevented if highway median barriers had met modern safety standards.

In findings released publicly on Tuesday, Coroner Alison Mills concluded that the deaths of Ta’avao Kelemete, Uili Fa’aofo and Leauga Jerry Leauga on State Highway 1 between Bombay and Ramarama on August 26, 2024, were avoidable.

The three men, all related, were travelling in a van with colleagues when a southbound truck crossed the median and collided with them. They died at the scene. A 21 year old remains in critical condition, and two others were injured.

Initial police indications suggested a tyre blew out on the truck, causing it to veer off course. But the coroner found the tragedy was compounded by a legacy wire median barrier installed in the late 1990s that failed to prevent the truck from crossing into oncoming traffic.

Mills stated the crash could have been prevented if the median barrier had been up to current safety standards. She recommended that road authorities urgently prioritise replacing all legacy median barriers across the state highway network.

The three men were Samoan seasonal workers preparing to return home to their families. Instead, their loved ones are planning funerals.