In April 1995 a group of young adults were on a school trip to Department of Conservation (DOC) lands on New Zealand's South Island. Moments after 18 of the group had stepped onto a 3 m × 3 m viewing platform it collapsed and fell 30 m. Fourteen people died and the other four were seriously injured. This paper reviews circumstances that contributed to this tragedy. Features of the construction of the timber platform are presented, along with building code requirements that should have been followed but were not. The principal technical reason for the collapse was simple and straightforward; the cantilevered platform was not properly connected to its foundation. More complex however, was the role of non-technical factors that contributed to the collapse. These included failures in project management, provision of qualified engineering input, construction management, compliance with the building code, construction inspection, and posting of load limit signs. The evolution of DOC and project management issues that allowed these failures to occur are examined. Recommendations of the commission of inquiry are presented and resultant changes in DOC's engineering and management procedures are addressed. The issue of accountability and the legal position of DOC present additional interesting twists to this story. The paper concludes with comments by the author that reflect on factors associated with the platform collapse.Key words: platform, collapse, structural failure, building code, timber construction, nailed connections, project management, commission of inquiry, New Zealand.