News

As reported last week, University of Otago student and regular Critic contributor Scott Ridley was tragically killed on March 31, when his car collided head-on with a truck and trailer unit in heavy fog near Hampden.
Scott was heavily involved in the community in a number of ways, particularly around the University and OUSA. At Radio One, Scott had been a key contributor for over three years, and station manager Sean Norling describes Scott as “always happy, always on point, always smiling”. Losing Scott, he said, was “such a shock… in a word, he’s irreplaceable”.

 
Scott was also working at the Waitaki District Council as their communications and policy support officer at the time of his death. His workmates there have been “left devastated” by the loss of a popular member of their team, council chief executive Michael Ross said.

 
OUSA President Harriet Geoghegan was a close friend of Scott’s, and describes him as “a huge support person for me… Scotty was my best friend.” She spoke of the selflessness Scott had always displayed, spending hours helping out with OUSA things, as a Queer Peer Supporter, on the OCOM Executive, and volunteering for Radio One and Critic. Geoghegan describes Scott as “a wonderful person to talk to and get advice from…everyone that worked with him loved him”.
 

This sentiment is shared by former Critic editor Ben Thomson, who worked closely with Scott in the news team in 2009. In the second half of the year, Scott “led Critic’s coverage of the Undie 500 and its aftermath and did an absolutely stellar job; you could never have asked for better”.
 

“He had all the makings of a great reporter, and was so committed and passionate about his work – really going the extra mile for us all the time. Scott was a really talented guy who had such a promising future, he made a great addition to our team and we all loved having him around,” Thomson said.

 
Scott’s funeral was held on Monday 4th April at St Patrick’s Basilica in Oamaru.

 
The driver of the truck, Anthony Lyn (Tony) Smith, was also killed in the collision. Mr Smith, who died at the scene, was married with children and grandchildren.