Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power

May. 19, 2008 07:15 AM
Associated Press

WELLINGTON, New Zealand - A New Zealand woman dependent on an oxygen machine for survival died when the power company shut off the electricity to her home because of an overdue bill, a coroner's court heard Monday.

Folole Muliaga, 44, a nursery school teacher, needed an oxygen machine to help her breathe and died two hours after Mercury Energy cut power to her home, Auckland Coroner Gordon Matenga heard in the inquest.

Muliaga's death on May 29, 2007, outraged New Zealanders and saw Prime Minister Helen Clark denounce the company's actions as heartless and intolerable.

Muliaga's husband, Lopaavea, told the court that he contacted Mercury Energy in early May 2007 to try to arrange paying their overdue power bill in installments but was unsuccessful.

He made a payment in May but the power was disconnected eight days later. At the time, he testified, he thought he only owed $26.67.

Mercury Energy said at the time that $130.12 was owed.

An emotional Lopaavea Muliaga said he was at work when the power was cut and arrived home to find his wife dead and two ambulance officers at the house.

He said by the time of her death his overweight wife needed the oxygen machine 16 hours a day to help her breathe.

In the wake of Folole Muliaga's death, the power company said it would review the way it deals with customers with medical dependencies and those in financial difficulty.

Lawyers for Mercury Energy and its subcontractor have expressed condolences to the Muliaga family, and have said they hoped some answers would come from the inquest.

A police investigation last year found no grounds for filing criminal charges against the utility.

Coroners in New Zealand can order inquests into unusual deaths to assess the circumstances surrounding them so they can make recommendations to prevent future occurrences. The inquest does not assign blame.

Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power


So lemme get this straight,

This idiot thought the bill would only be 26 dollars and some change?

I think if you have someone dependent on oxygen like that shouldn't you maybe call the electric company and warn them that someone in the house needs oxygen on a minute to minute basis. Just in case.
rebgirl420 Reviewed by rebgirl420 on . Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power May. 19, 2008 07:15 AM Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand - A New Zealand woman dependent on an oxygen machine for survival died when the power company shut off the electricity to her home because of an overdue bill, a coroner's court heard Monday. Folole Muliaga, 44, a nursery school teacher, needed an oxygen machine to help her breathe and died two hours after Mercury Energy cut power to her home, Auckland Coroner Rating: 5