Irish man who took job as seasonal worker in New Zealand sues over farm accident

Complainant suffered catastrophic injuries when his arm was pulled into a combine harvester, court heard

Counsel said the judgment of the Irish High Court will have to be enforced in New Zealand but the proceedings had been brought in Ireland as the New Zealand company had come to this country and held meetings here about short-term working in New Zealand.

A young man who signed up in this country to work as a seasonal farm worker abroad suffered catastrophic injuries when his arm was pulled into a combine harvester on a rural New Zealand farm, the High Court has heard.

Padraig Lowry told a judge the scene was “like something you could see in a horror movie” after his arm was amputated to four inches below his right elbow in the accident eight years ago when he was just 21 years old.