A coroner has made a recommendation around clearing loose gravel from roads following a report into the death of a Gisborne woman in a 2022 crash.
Tennille Levis Cunningham-Pohatu, 46, a mother-of-five, died after her ute crashed at about 4.35pm on January 2, 2022.
The incident was on a moderate right-hand bend near the intersection of Matawai Road (State Highway 2) and Bushmere Rd. She was travelling from Gisborne towards Te Karaka.
The police Serious Crash Unit investigated the causes of the crash and determined that her vehicle lost control as she passed the northern entry/exit of Bushmere Rd while negotiating the moderate right-hand bend at the intersection.
Cunningham-Pohatu was the only person in the vehicle and was not wearing a seatbelt. She sustained major head injuries after she was ejected from the vehicle.
The day of the crash
Associate Coroner Jennifer Smith wrote in her findings that Cunningham-Pohatu and her husband had started talking on the morning of January 2 about a new job offer she had received, which involved mentoring young women who were in trouble.
They had a disagreement about the job and as a result, she told him that she wanted to go to Awapuni Rd.
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She packed her bag and he drove her back. She was upset when she got to the address and told her husband to leave.
That was the last time he saw her alive.
According to the coroner, Cunningham-Pohatu’s son believed it was between 1 and 2pm when he asked her if she was okay while she was at that address, and she responded that she needed her phone.
He saw her walk away after that but did not see her again. It is unclear where she was or what she was doing between 2pm and the time of the crash.
There were no witnesses to the crash, but a passing motorist came across the crash scene soon afterwards and found Cunningham-Pohatu ejected from her vehicle. The motorist called 111 and performed CPR before emergency services soon arrived.
Fire and Emergency New Zealand and then ambulance staff attempted to resuscitate her, but she died at the scene.
The coroner accepted the findings of a post-mortem examination which found the cause of death was “severe head injury consistent with base of skull fracture”, along with other associated injuries due to the crash.
Police investigation and findings
Police did not consider speed to be a contributing factor in the crash.
The weather was fine, and the road was dry at the time. The road markings were clear and there were no contaminants located on the road surface either.
Cunningham-Pohatu had a full driver’s licence, the vehicle had a current Warrant of Fitness and there were no mechanical issues identified when it was examined after the crash.
Police did consider that loose stone chips on the road surface on the outside of the bend near the exit may have been a contributing factor in the crash and advised the entire roadway was swept clear of gravel after all repairs to provide consistency in the friction levels.
Police noted the presence of alcohol and cannabis in Tennille’s blood and considered it to have been a contributing factor, giving the opinion that it was likely to have slowed her reactions to any hazard.
A toxicology report showed she was more than three times over the legal blood alcohol limit and THC, the active ingredient in cannabis, was present.
The coroner noted there was no evidence to determine the quantity of cannabis or the time it was consumed.
Coroner’s conclusions and recommendation
Smith was satisfied that there were no indications that the crash was intentional or that Cunningham-Pohatu had any suicidal thoughts.
“I am satisfied that it is more likely than not that the crash was accidental and occurred due to Tennille failing to negotiate the moderate right-hand bend,” Smith wrote.
“It is likely that the level of alcohol in her blood slowed her reaction times, especially when the vehicle travelled through the loose gravel at the exit of the bend. Cannabis may also have played a role but as it is not known when Tennille last consumed cannabis that cannot be known with any degree of certainty.”
Smith noted that the public messaging around not drinking and driving was well-known and wrote there was “nothing I can usefully add here that has not already been stated by numerous agencies over several decades”.
She also re-emphasised that wearing seatbelts saves lives, but wrote it was “unclear whether this would have made a difference” in this case.
Coroner Smith recommended, “that at the completion of any repairs conducted on the road, employees or contractors should ensure the entire roadway be swept clear of loose gravel, to provide consistency in the friction levels for vehicles while negotiating any bend, including outside the marked lanes.”
In response to the coroner’s recommendation, New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi confirmed it was the relevant road controlling authority.
“NZTA will re-emphasise to our maintenance and temporary traffic management contractors the importance of loose gravel being swept clear of roadways and will monitor this as part of the contractor’s safety performance indicators.”
