Coroner's Finding: Van Zelm, Robert Bernhard
Deceased
Robert Bernhard Van Zelm
Demographics
67y, male
Date of death
2023-02-05
Finding date
2025-01-29
Cause of death
Extensive head, neck, chest, spine and leg injuries from motorcycle accident
AI-generated summary
Robert Van Zelm, a 67-year-old motorcycle enthusiast with a left lower limb amputation, died from extensive head, neck, chest, spine and leg injuries sustained in a single motorcycle accident on Union Bridge Road, Tasmania on 5 February 2023. He was riding a 1974 Kawasaki motorcycle with the gear lever in the traditional left-hand position. To operate this lever, he leaned over and used his left hand—a technique he had performed smoothly earlier that day. The accident occurred on a section of road with a significant 17-metre crack in the bitumen surface with a collapsed edge, which was difficult to discern due to tree shadows obscuring the crack when traveling northbound. The road surface condition, combined with his method of changing gears requiring leftward lean, likely caused motorcycle instability. No excessive speed, mechanical faults, intoxication, distraction, or acute health events were identified. The road has since been repaired.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Contributing factors
- Poor condition bitumen surface with 17-metre crack on Union Bridge Road
- Collapsed road edge with 90mm subsidence at point of departure
- Road crack obscured by tree shadows when traveling northbound
- Method of changing gears requiring leftward lean on motorcycle with prosthetic limb
- Motorcycle gear lever not yet repositioned to right-hand side despite consideration
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