Coroner's Finding: Brewer, Ruby and Shanzel
Deceased
Ruby Ann Brewer, Shanzel Lee Brewer
Demographics
female
Date of death
2017-06-11
Finding date
2020-12-14
Cause of death
asphyxia due to smoke inhalation
AI-generated summary
Two sisters, Ruby (13) and Shanzel (11), died from asphyxia due to smoke inhalation when a shed where they were sleeping caught fire on 11 June 2017 in rural Tasmania. The fire likely originated from an electrical fault in the rear bedroom. Critical preventable factors included: absence of smoke detectors (property owner's responsibility under regulations), unlicensed and dangerous electrical work, and an overloaded electrical circuit. A qualified electrician had identified circuit overload and offered further assessment, which was declined. The shed itself lacked proper building permits and basic safety features (no plumbing, single entrance). Emergency response was delayed, though unlikely to have changed the outcome. The coroner emphasised that smoke detectors are cheap, easily available safety devices that could have prevented this tragedy, and stressed that only qualified, licensed electricians should perform any electrical work.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- absence of smoke detectors in sleeping area
- electrical fault causing fire, likely from arcing in rear bedroom
- unlicensed electrical work by unqualified person (Bryan Stephen Pike)
- unqualified electrical work performed by property resident (Clifford Brewer)
- overloaded electrical circuit
- joined extension cords reducing circuit breaker effectiveness
- live electrical cable hanging underneath main home
- lack of proper building permits and approvals for shed use as residential accommodation
- shed construction without planning or building permits
- single entrance to shed limiting escape options
- delayed emergency service response (approximately 43 minutes)
Coroner's recommendations
- Every home occupier should install and maintain properly operating smoke detectors, especially in rooms where people are sleeping
- No one should ever carry out electrical work of any kind unless they are properly qualified and licensed to do so
- Tasmania Fire Service to review initial response protocols
Full text
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