Philomen (48) died in a underground explosion. She was a maintenance Planner for Watercare Services in Auckland and the explosion occured soon after an inspection tour of the $240 million project to lay a 28km pipeline from South Auckland to the central suburbs. Methane gas was found in the pipe where the disaster occured which injured a further six people, one critically.
Philomen and her family had migrated to New Zealand from Canada six years earlier, she is survived by her two teenage children.