By Josefine Ganko and Riley Walter
The heartbroken parents of a boy who died when he became stuck between rocks off a popular NSW beach have remembered nine-year-old Kaison Greaves as an “adventurer” and “an amazing big brother”.
His tragic death marked the sixth on the NSW coast over the Easter long weekend, a toll that Surf Life Saving NSW chief executive Steve Pearce described as “the worst” he’s seen.
Nine-year-old Kaison Greaves died after becoming trapped between rocks in the water at South West Rocks.
Emergency services were called to South West Rocks in northern NSW about 3.30pm on Sunday after Kaison became stuck between rocks off the shoreline.
NSW Police, Fire and Rescue NSW and Surf Life Saving NSW crews spent hours in deepening waters, eventually reaching up to their necks, as they tried to free Kaison, who died at the scene.
Inspector Peter Walton said the boy, who had been visiting the Mid North Coast from Queensland with his family, had probably been playing on the rocks when he died in a “tragic misadventure”.
“These situations are always tough for first responders and I can only imagine what the family were going through whilst they were watching it all unfold,” Walton said.
An online fundraiser has been launched by friends of the family to help bring Kaison’s body back home to Queensland.
“With the tide coming in, and we’ve had some rather large surf, there were a lot of waves crashing in … it was very difficult, and they certainly did their best.”
Kaison’s father, David Greaves, on Monday paid tribute to his son, saying he was “larger than life”.
“He was an adventurer, strong-willed and incredibly funny, and always had a cheeky grin,” Greaves wrote in a statement given to Nine News.
“He was an amazing big brother … Our hearts are broken.”
An online fundraiser has been launched by friends of the family to help bring Kaison’s body back to Queensland.
The nine-year-old’s death capped a horror long weekend on the NSW coast, which was battered by strong swells and dangerous surf.
Volunteer lifesavers and lifeguards performed more than 150 rescues, 50 of them on Sunday, as warm weather drew large crowds to the state’s beaches and waterways.
“This is the worst Easter long weekend that we have seen on our records here for NSW,” said Pearce. “It’s been the perfect storm with high temperatures … hundreds of thousands of holidaymakers venturing out and an absolutely enormous swell impacting the entire NSW coastline.
Surf Life Saving chief executive Steve Pearce says this is the “worst Easter long weekend” he has seen. Credit: Nick Moir
“We were focusing [on] the beaches, and particularly the amount of people we thought would be streaming into the uncontrolled locations, where we don’t have lifesavers or lifeguards.
“But we just didn’t expect the amount of people that have lost their lives [from] being washed off rock platforms, rock shoals, and rock fishing in general.”
Earlier on Sunday, a father died, and his teenage son remains in hospital after the pair were swept off rocks while fishing at Wattamolla Beach in the Royal National Park, south of Sydney, at 11am on Sunday.
On Saturday, a rock fisherman was swept into the sea at Kianinny Bay, near Tathra on the NSW South Coast, at 8.15am. His body was found two hours later.
A fisherman is dead and a teenager is in hospital after they were swept off rocks at Wattamolla, south of Sydney.Credit: Nine
Early on Friday morning, a 58-year-old fisherman died after being swept into the water in Wollongong Harbour overnight. Police believe the man was fishing on a rock wall nearby when he was swept into the water.
Later the same morning, a body was found in the harbour off Middle Head Point, Mosman, after emergency services were called to assist a man who fell into the water off rocks on the harbour’s edge around 10.20am.
In Sydney’s eastern suburbs, a multi-agency search operation started about 1pm on Friday after reports that a man was struggling in the water off Little Bay Beach. The search has so far been unsuccessful and will enter its fourth day on Tuesday.
Shortly after 3pm Friday, the third fatality of the day was confirmed after a fisherman was washed off rocks near Eden on NSW’s South Coast.
Speaking from a campaign trail stop in Bateman’s Bay on the NSW South Coast, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said “tragedy has struck over this Easter weekend” before sharing his condolences with the families of those who lost their lives.
“Australians love the water and the surf, I’m one of those, but please, everyone, be careful,” he said.
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