Drownings in NSW: ‘Unprecedented’ 18 deaths since Christmas Day
AN “unprecedented” number of drownings over the holiday period has prompted Emergency Services Minister David Elliott to urge families to take greater responsibility for pool safety.
NSW
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SWIMMERS need to take responsibility for their own safety and stay out of dangerous water, the NSW government has said following 18 drowning deaths in the state in 10 days.
Emergency Services Minister David Elliott says the state’s “heart has broken” over the worrying spate in drowning deaths in NSW — but says families must take greater responsibility.
“I’m appalled, like everybody else, at the amount of deaths which have occurred over the course of this holiday period,” Mr Elliott said.
“If you’re going to take a risk, this is (a) tragedy waiting to happen.
“I, like anybody, have been horrified by the number of drownings over this holiday period.
“I understand it’s unprecedented.
“But the appeal from the government today is to make sure you take ownership of your own safety.”
In the latest tragic incident, former Family Court judge Richard Gee, 83, was found dead in the backyard pool of his Belrose home; and two-year-old Vera Peacock drowned in a pool at Macquarie Fields on January 1.
Mr Gee is the 18th person to die from drowning or suspected drowning in NSW since Christmas Day, while a two-year-old boy is in intensive care after being pulled from a fish pond at a Sydney home yesterday.
“If you don’t know that your fence is childproof, fix it. If you don’t know that a river is going to be running a current underneath it, don’t go into it. If you don’t know that a surf is safe, don’t enter the surf,” Mr Elliott said.
“The appeal today is to make sure that you take responsibility for your own safety and the safety of your friends.”
Paramedics echoed Mr Elliott’s plea, saying they have responded to 225 drownings or near-drownings in the past two months.
“Nobody intends for these tragedies to happen, but paramedics sadly see time and again they do,” NSW Ambulance Inspector John Brotherhood said.
“Kids will be kids, so it’s about being vigilant; knowing where your child is and keeping an eye on them at all times; and maintaining safety around pools.”
The state government is due to discuss the spike in drownings at its next Cabinet meeting in early February and Mr Elliott did not rule out the idea of putting more funding into life saving schemes.
“But all the money in the world is not going to replace the death of an individual. All the money in the world is not going to ensure that people take responsibility for their own actions,” he added.
RECENT WATER-RELATED DEATHS IN NSW
JANUARY 3
Former Family Court judge Richard Gee, 83, found in his backyard pool in Belrose
JANUARY 2
A body, believed to be that of a 44-year-old man, is found in Lake Eucumbene in the Snowy Mountains
JANUARY 1
A two-year-old girl found in a backyard pool in Macquarie Fields — Vera Peacock
DECEMBER 30
— A body, believed to belong to 42-year-old Peter Abd-El-Kaddous who went missing while swimming in the Murrumbidgee River at Wagga Wagga, recovered.
— A 46-year-old man dies while swimming at Yamba on NSW north coast.
— A body, believed to be 14-year-old Tui Gallaher missing for three days, found at Sydney’s Maroubra beach.
— A Pakistani man, 27, dies after being pulled from waterhole at Mermaid Pools in Sydney’s south.
— A man, believed to be in his 70s, dies after being pulled from Lady Robinsons Beach in Sydney’s south.
DECEMBER 29
— A two-year-old boy dies in hospital one week after he and twin sister were pulled unconscious from a backyard swimming pool.
DECEMBER 28
— A 64-year-old man from Kyogle pulled from the water at Belongil Beach, Byron Bay.
DECEMBER 27
— A man’s body found in swimming baths at The Entrance on NSW central coast after he suffered suspected heart attack
— A 25-year-old man’s body recovered in Greendale in western Sydney after he went missing while swimming on Boxing Day.
DECEMBER 26
— Geoffrey Blackadder, 60, died trying to rescue young relatives from rip at Wooli Beach on the NSW north coast.
— A man, 56, drowns at Merry Beach at Kioloa on NSW south coast.
— A 59-year-old man dies from a suspected cardiac arrest near the entrance of the Evan’s River on the north coast.
— A 27-year-old man dies at Kangaroo Valley in the Shoalhaven region during a Boxing Day swim at a picnic ground.
— A two-year-old girl dies in hospital after being pulled unconscious from a backyard swimming pool with her brother.
DECEMBER 25
A 27-year-old man died in the Wattamolla lagoon at Royal National Park, south of Sydney
Originally published as Drownings in NSW: ‘Unprecedented’ 18 deaths since Christmas Day
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