The last rites of Dayal Parbhu Patel, an Indian migrant who has been in Christchurch since the early 1990s, were performed last Tuesday at the Harewood Memorial Gardens and Crematorium with hundreds of Indian community members attending. 

As reported earlier, 58-year-old Mr Patel, a welder by profession, was killed at a workplace incident that took place on June 9. He was working at Pegasus Engineering in the Izone Business Hub in Rolleston near Christchurch at that time. Police and emergency services rushed to the scene around 12.30pm that afternoon, after being informed that Mr Patel been trapped under a beam. He died at the scene. 

A much-loved member of the local Indian community hailing from Gujarat, Mr Patel is survived by his 21-year-old daughter, who is studying at the University of Canterbury, and his wife who works in the mushroom industry.

As is mandatory by law, police has notified WorkSafe of the incident, which is investigating the accident. A WorkSafe spokesperson said, “The investigation into the incident is under way and is likely to take some time. While we are investigating, we are unable to provide further information.”