Kerryn's story
Kerryn O'Connor was just 35 years old when she was electrocuted by a submersible water pump she was using in the backyard of her Townsville home.
The pump wasn't designed, manufactured, or tested to Australian standards and an internal, hidden fault caused the outer metal casing of the pump to become live, killing Kerryn instantly.
Kerryn's family are sharing their story to make sure it doesn't happen to anyone else.
The O'Connor's message for the community
It doesn't matter what electrical equipment you buy – a toaster, heater or washing machine – check for the Regulatory Compliance Mark (RCM) printed on the product or its packaging – this means the product meets Australian safety standards.
Kerryn's family also highlight the importance of safety switches on every circuit - "It just would have meant the difference between Kerryn being with us and not being with us".
Safety switches disconnect the source of electricity when a fault is detected, saving you from electric shock or worse.
RUN TIME: 6 mins 10 secs
00:00:09:08 - 00:00:23:17
Speaker 1
All the worries that all parents have, but the last thing we would ever have thought of losing any of our kids was through an electrical accident.
00:00:23:17 - 00:00:35:24
Speaker 2
I'm Jim, this is my lovely wife, Rob.
00:00:36:18 - 00:00:39:02
Speaker 1
We were married young.
00:00:39:02 - 00:00:40:08
Speaker 2
We didn't muck around. We were married very young.
00:00:40:18 - 00:00:55:11
Speaker 1
17 months later, Alanna and Kerryn come along. So we were a happy little band of five. Very inquisitive and happy kids. Sean was always looking after his little sisters.
00:00:57:03 - 00:01:18:12
Speaker 2
Kerryn was... She was probably my sidekick, I guess. Kerryn was always tagging along. So when I was a kid and I started racing BMX, then she jumped in and raced it and it wasn't enough to race with the girls. She'd race in with the boys. But I guess the point is, if I ever sort of needed a sidekick, we were going camping or going on an adventure or something she would always come along.
00:01:18:19 - 00:01:23:09
Speaker 1
There's Kerryn. Beautiful girl. Beautiful, beautiful girl.
00:01:25:20 - 00:01:47:15
Speaker 2
Dry seasons in North Queensland, there are pretty big water restrictions. So really tight for years on end. So if you had a bore you could just splash the water around like nothing. If we ran the pump too long, it would would silt up, it would get a bit clogged. Yeah. She must have been trying to, you know, dunk it to flush it out.
00:01:47:15 - 00:01:58:07
Speaker 2
But at some stage she's touched it. It had a hidden electrical fault in it. She she couldn't let go.
00:02:00:07 - 00:02:10:23
Speaker 1
Jim got a phone call and it was half past 12. And he woke me up and said, Kerryn's gone.
00:02:12:23 - 00:02:36:11
Speaker 2
We knew roughly the circumstance. We knew it was, she had been electrocuted and it was a pump. The poor thing for for all of the things that she, adventures she had gone on and been through and survived and everything she she died alone in her back yard. I guess the reason why we're putting ourselves through this is we just don't want anybody else to have to.
00:02:36:20 - 00:02:55:07
Speaker 2
Look, if I was sitting on the couch and I read that somebody else had, you know, unknowingly plugged an appliance in and it had taken them from their family. And it was because of you know, awareness. And people didn't know. That's why we're doing this.
00:02:55:07 - 00:03:27:08
Speaker 3
I did the examination on the bore pump. The design of the bore pump was flawed. She didn't know that the product was not designed to Australian standards and the electrical wiring caused the outer metal casing of the pump to go live. The supplier failed to ensure that the product was marked with the RCM, the Regulatory Compliance Mark, to indicate that he had taken responsibility for the safety of the product, that it had been tested to the Australian standards and had been tested to be electrically safe.
00:03:27:13 - 00:03:53:17
Speaker 1
Kerryn didn't buy the pump. It was purchased online from an Australian supplier. In Australia, if a person wanted to buy something and they were thinking they're being cautious and they're thinking if I buy it in Australia it'll be safe because well that's not the case. There's so many things that are being imported and they don't realise until something happens like this.
00:03:54:01 - 00:04:03:11
Speaker 3
You owe it to your family and to yourself to ensure that the products that you buy are electrically safe and have been tested to be electrically safe.
00:04:03:11 - 00:04:14:11
Speaker 2
A process was put in place in Australia called the RCM or the Regulatory Compliance Mark. Things have always got like a little bill tag, part number, serial number, the RCM logo. That's what you're looking for.
00:04:14:13 - 00:04:20:21
Speaker 1
It's going to be other things, not just pumps. I mean, you could be talking about a toaster, a heater, anything.
00:04:21:03 - 00:04:30:14
Speaker 3
Look for the RCM, the Regulatory Compliance Mark. A tick inside the circle, inside the triangle as a sure sign that the product has been tested to be electrically safe.
00:04:31:02 - 00:04:50:16
Speaker 1
And also the other thing we'd really like to see is that every circuit is protected with a safety switch because in this instance, somewhere along the line, someone hadn't done the right thing. And it just would mean the difference between Kerryn being with us and not being with us.
00:04:50:17 - 00:05:04:01
Speaker 2
She probably wouldn't have even gone, oh. It would have just tripped straight up. It takes about that much electrical current to go through your heart and stop it. And I said, the safety switch kicks in just a fraction before that.
00:05:04:10 - 00:05:17:05
Speaker 3
The safety switch disconnects the source of electricity when a fault is detected. One of the lessons from Kerryn's story is that an electrical safety switch, if fitted to the circuit on the pump, could very well have saved her life.
00:05:18:14 - 00:05:29:05
Speaker 2
If the pump manufacturer had've done his stuff. If the first electrician that worked on the rental house had've done his stuff and advised the owner of the house.
00:05:29:10 - 00:05:43:10
Speaker 1
Many people did the wrong thing and Kerryn was the only one who didn't. And Kerryn's the one who's paid the price for it. It didn't have to happen. That's the sad thing. It was preventable. It shouldn't shouldn't have happened.
00:05:45:04 - 00:06:12:08
Speaker 3
Kerryn's story shows we all have a part to play in the sale, importing, supply and purchasing of electrical equipment in all our homes to ensure that they are electrically safe.
The O'Connor's message for suppliers and importers of electrical equipment
Anyone involved in the supply chain of electrical equipment sold in Queensland, for example suppliers and importers, must ensure the equipment is electrically safe.
The supplier of the pump that killed Kerryn was fined, a conviction was recorded against the company and the pump was recalled across Australia at the company's expense.
As an electrical worker, if you supply electrical equipment as part of your work – including fans, lights, and hot water systems – you are a supplier and have a legal responsibility to ensure it's safe.
RUN TIME: 5 mins 40 secs
A00:00:09:16 - 00:00:21:23
Speaker 1
All of the worries that all parents have, but the last thing we would ever have thought of losing any of our kids was through an electrical accident.
00:00:22:04 - 00:00:34:20
Speaker 2
I’m Jim, this is my lovely wife, Rob.
00:00:35:10 - 00:00:36:09
Speaker 1
We were married young.
00:00:37:02 - 00:00:38:24
Speaker 2
We didn’t muck around, we were married very young.
00:00:39:10 - 00:00:47:22
Speaker 1
17 months later. Alanna and Kerryn come along. So we were a happy little band of five.
00:00:49:14 - 00:01:06:06
Speaker 2
Kerryn was. She's probably my sidekick I guess. Kerryn was always tagging along. So when I was a kid and I started racing BMX, then she jumped in and raced it. But I guess the point is, if I ever needed a sidekick. We were going camping, going on an adventure or something, she would always come along.
00:01:08:17 - 00:01:30:12
Speaker 2
Dry seasons in North Queensland have pretty big water restrictions. So really tight for, you know, years on end. So if you had a bore you could just splash the water around like nothing. If we ran the pump too long, it would silt up, get a bit clogged. Yeah she must have been trying to, you know, dunk it to flush it out.
00:01:30:12 - 00:01:41:03
Speaker 2
But at some stage, she's touched it. It had a hidden electrical fault in it. She she couldn't let go of it.
00:01:42:02 - 00:01:52:19
Speaker 1
Jim got a phone call and it was half past 12. And he woke me up and said, Kerryn’s gone.
00:01:54:18 - 00:02:18:21
Speaker 2
We knew roughly the circumstance. We knew it was she'd been electrocuted and it was a pump. The poor thing for for all of the things that she, adventures she had gone on and been through and survived and everything she she died alone in her, in her back yard. I guess the reason why we're putting ourselves through this is we just don't want anybody else to have to.
00:02:18:21 - 00:02:33:18
Speaker 2
Look, If I was sitting on the couch and I read that somebody else had you know, unknowingly plugged an appliance in and it had taken them from their family. And it was because of, you know, awareness. And people didn't know. That's what we're doing this.
00:02:33:18 - 00:03:08:12
Speaker 3
I did the examination on the bore pump. The design of the bore pump was flawed. She didn't know that the product was not designed to Australian standards and the electrical wiring caused the outer metal casing of the pump to go live. In this instance the outcome has been that a product that did not meet Australian standards, it has not been tested to Australian standards, was made available to sale with inferior and dangerous internal wiring.
00:03:08:12 - 00:03:22:21
Speaker 3
And as a result of this, the company director was fined, the company was fined, a criminal conviction was recorded against the company and the product had to be recalled across Australia at enormous expense to the company.
00:03:23:18 - 00:03:36:22
Speaker 1
Kerryn didn’t buy the pump. It was purchased online from an Australian supplier. There are so many things that are being imported and they don't realise until something happens like this.
00:03:37:13 - 00:03:48:13
Speaker 2
A process was put in place in Australia called the RCM, the Regulatory Compliance Mark. Things have always got like a little build tag, part number, serial number. The RCM logo. That’s what you're looking for.
00:03:48:16 - 00:03:54:13
Speaker 1
It's got to be other things, not just pumps. I mean, you could be talking about, you know, a toaster, a heater, anything.
00:03:55:03 - 00:04:33:11
Speaker 3
Suppliers need to ensure that the product is being sourced from an importer or manufacturer that is registered as a responsible supplier, that the product is marked with the RCM mark to indicate that it is being sourced from a registered responsible supplier. For suppliers to register, it's not difficult or expensive. You go to the national website to register as a responsible supplier and give you the authority to use the Regulatory Compliance Mark on your product to signify the product is electrically safe and been tested.
00:04:34:09 - 00:05:04:17
Speaker 1
Anyone who's going to be supplying electrical products in Australia, especially importing them from overseas to make sure that they meet Australian standards, they have the Regulatory Compliance Mark that they're registered as responsible suppliers so that nobody else has to go through all this. Because if it had been done in this instance, we wouldn't be having this conversation. It didn't have to happen, that the sad thing.
00:05:04:17 - 00:05:11:02
Speaker 1
It was preventable. It shouldn't shouldn't have happened.
00:05:11:02 - 00:05:42:01
Speaker 3
Kerryn’s story shows suppliers need to play their part in electrical safety.