2023 NZ van crash that killed three S’poreans a reminder to not drive when tired: Coroner

SINGAPORE – When a camper van crashed in New Zealand, killing all three National University of Singapore undergraduates on board, it happened between midnight and 8am.

The timing is considered a biological risk factor for fatigue, said local police in a New Zealand coroner’s findings on

the April 2023 accident.

The report was made available to The Straits Times on June 5, and fatigue was listed as a likely factor in the crash.

Coroner Alexandra Cunninghame wrote that the tragic accident illustrates the importance of not driving when fatigued.

Said the coroner: “All drivers, and particularly those who are planning road trips around New Zealand, must ensure that their itineraries allow sufficient time for rest and sleep so that they are not driving tired.”

Ms Sherwin Chong Shi Yun and Ms Yang Xinyue, both 21, and Mr Vincent Lim Jia Jun, 24, died in the crash at around 1am on April 17 in Te Moana Road near Geraldine, a town two hours’ drive from Christchurch.

The coroner’s findings said Ms Chong and Ms Yang were studying in New Zealand universities at the time. ST understands that they were on an exchange programme.

On April 8, Mr Lim went to New Zealand for a two-week holiday. Ms Chong met him in Christchurch and they collected a Toyota Hiace camper van. On the rental agreement, Mr Lim said he was the primary driver. They drove to Auckland to meet Ms Yang, and then went on a sightseeing trip.

On April 15, the trio went skydiving in the town of Wanaka. The next day at 11.40pm, their camper van was captured on CCTV travelling through Lake Tekapo village.

About 2km away from Geraldine, the van crashed into a guardrail by a bridge and rolled onto its right side.

Ms Yang called emergency services at about 1am on April 17. She told the dispatcher she had been in an accident with two friends, and one of them could not get out of the vehicle. Forty seconds later, Ms Yang told the dispatcher there was a fire. Then, the dispatcher heard screams and other noises, and the line went dead about three minutes into the call.

Firefighters arrived 10 minutes later and found the burning van.

The New Zealand authorities determined that Mr Lim was in the driver’s seat, while Ms Yang was the front passenger and Ms Chong sat at the back.

Senior Constable Aaron Tapp from the Canterbury Serious Crash Unit, who investigated the accident, found that the camper van was travelling at no less than 91kmh when it crashed. The road’s speed limit is 100kmh.

SC Tapp noted there was no evidence that the vehicle had braked before the crash.

He said it was possible that the others in the vehicle may have been sleeping, while Mr Lim, the driver, may have been awake for more than 12 hours.

Mr Craig Chambers, a specialist fire investigator with New Zealand’s fire and emergency services department, said the likely cause of the fire was a battery near the wheel arch, which powered the living area of the van.

Mr Chambers believed the battery was displaced when the van crashed, and this created an electrical arc – an electricity flow which creates light and heat. The fire started at the wheel arch and spread to the engine compartment.

The coroner noted that there was no evidence to explain why the trio could not escape. He said it was possible that the doors were too difficult to open once the van had rolled onto its side. Due to fire damage, it was not known whether the doors were locked when the accident happened.

All three died due to inhalation of smoke and fumes in an enclosed space.

Forensic pathologists found that the two women did not have any life-threatening injuries, and though Mr Lim suffered head and lung injuries, they were not fatal.

SC Tapp said it was highly likely they would have survived had the van not caught fire.

In May 2017, Singaporean Chin Tze Hau, 38, and his Singaporean wife, Ms Ong See Yee, 29,

died after the camper van they were in hit another vehicle

on a highway about 40km south of Christchurch.

New Zealand coroner Anna Tutton said in a 2021 report

Mr Chin may have been fatigued

and was either driving without awareness or was experiencing micro-sleep.

This is when a person dozes off for several seconds. It often occurs due to sleep deprivation or while performing monotonous tasks, like driving on an empty highway.