Work Safe Tasmania has commenced proceedings in the Supreme Court to prevent documents it considers privileged in its investigation into the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy from being handed over to the Coroner.
Six children were killed and another three seriously injured when a gust of wind blew an inflatable jumping castle into the air on December 16th, 2021.
Work Safe is conducting its own investigation separate to the coroner to determine whether there have been any breaches of the Work Health and Safety Act.
The regulatory body says while it’s worked closely with the Coroner it’s concerned that the disclosure of certain information gathered as part of its investigation may compromise any potential prosecutions for serious offences.
Work Safe says it wants to ensure a fair and just outcome for the families of the victims, as well as for individuals involved that may have had responsibilities under the Act.
Work Health and Safety Regulator, Robyn Pearce says the investigation is unprecedented in its nature and scope and while a decision is yet to be made on whether there will be any prosecutions or not, it
has not been common in Tasmania for an inquest to precede a prosecution.
