Deceased
Sarah Catherine Tonkin
Demographics
37y, female
Date of death
2019-12-13
Finding date
2024-07-23
Cause of death
Blunt force head injuries
AI-generated summary
Sarah Tonkin, 37, died when a tow hitch assembly became dislodged from an Isuzu truck and struck her vehicle head-on, causing severe head injuries. The hitch pin securing the tow hitch was not properly installed during truck modifications at Brenmark Transport Equipment. Despite thorough investigation, it remained unclear whether improper installation or theft during vehicle storage caused the failure. The coroner recommended industry regulators review tow hitch installation procedures and consider mandatory tethering of hitch pins to prevent similar incidents. This case highlights the importance of rigorous quality control during vehicle modifications and inspection protocols.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Male, female, male, female·Nicholas Brown: combined drug (methadone and benzodiazepine) intoxication; Toni …
Joint inquest into four deaths of individuals prescribed opioid replacement therapy by Dr J. between September 2016 and August 2017: Nicholas Shane Brown (35), Toni Lee Wiki (38), Matthew Wayne Winwood (47), and Belinda …
40y · Male·Multiple injuries sustained in a workplace incident
A 40-year-old concrete pump operator died when a concrete placing boom collapsed, striking him fatally. The boom failed due to metal fatigue cracking in the king post (internal turret component), which had developed over…
0y · Male·Perinatal hypoxia
Baby R, born at 39 weeks 6 days via planned homebirth with private midwives, died from perinatal hypoxia on day 6 of life. The mother had significant obstetric risk factors: previous emergency caesarean section, macrosom…
Source and disclaimer
This page reproduces or summarises information from publicly available findings published by Australian coroners' courts. Coronial is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any coronial court or government body.
Content may be incomplete, reformatted, or summarised. All court orders for redaction and non-publication are respected; documents with technically defective redaction have been excluded from the database entirely. Always refer to the original court publication for the authoritative record.
Copyright in original materials remains with the relevant government jurisdiction. AI-generated summaries and tagging are for educational purposes only, may contain inaccuracies, and must not be treated as legal documents. We welcome feedback for correction —