Samantha Kudeweh was killed by one of Hamilton Zoo's Sumatran tigers in September 2015.

Richard Kudeweh​ has broken his silence about the fatal tiger attack on his wife last year, saying he hopes the city council accepts responsibility for her death.

Hamilton Zoo curator Samantha Kudeweh​ was killed by one of the zoo's Sumatran tigers on September 20 while carrying out routine duties inside the animal's enclosure.

WorkSafe New Zealand announced on Friday it would prosecute Hamilton City Council over her death.

FAIRFAX NZ Hamilton Zoo's Sumatran tiger Oz.

​The charge alleges the council breached Section 6 of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 by failing to take all practicable steps to ensure Kudeweh was not exposed to hazards arising out of working with the tiger Oz.

The charge carries a maximum fine of $250,000.

Richard Kudeweh said he was satisfied with the progress of WorkSafe NZ's investigation and hoped the council plead guilty to the charge.

Kudeweh works as the zoo's team leader of grounds and facilities.

"They [council] will do whatever they do, it's out of my control. But the quicker it's finished the better it will be for me," Kudeweh said.

"I hope they plead guilty because I can't see any way out for them. It's not a bad thing or a good thing for them to plead guilty. All the bad stuff has already happened. Is it a bad thing for council to plead guilty? It doesn't matter, the judge will make a decision on that."

In a statement, city council chief executive Richard Briggs said the council was yet to decide how it would plead to the charge.

Briggs said council staff and law firm Tompkins Wake would work through the disclosure process relating to documents filed by WorkSafe NZ.

"We remain committed to transparency on the outcomes related to Sam's death, and at the appropriate time we will make information available and have further comment," Briggs said.

A date for a first court appearance has not yet been set.

Following his wife's death, Kudeweh said he had focused on the welfare of the couple's two children, Billy, 9, and Sage, 3.

In the past week, the children had started sharing stories about their mother.

"They've talked about their mum in a nice way and they haven't done that since day dot. I get very emotional about that, but it's been quite nice that they've done it. Down the track I've always thought about how to keep her memory alive for them."

Kudeweh returned briefly to his zoo job but said it didn't go well and had opted to take more leave.

He planned to return to the zoo in April.

Briggs said it had been an extremely difficult time for council and zoo staff.

Hamilton Zoo was a tight-knit group and staff continued to draw strength from one another.

Kudeweh didn't know when the coroner's inquest into his wife's death would be held.

He hoped the inquest would identify learnings that could help keep others safe.

"My wife's dead and they can't bring her back. The thought in my head is whatever happened, it happened very quickly and she didn't suffer because natural systems took over. There might have been shock and she wouldn't have felt any pain. I don't want to know anything different from that."