OPINION: Don't play blame game on 6-year-old's drowning

IT’S hard to view the drowning of a six year old boy at South Ballina Beach as anything other than a tragic accident.

Flowers were left after the drowning of a child at Ballina's South Wall on Saturday. Picture: Nolan Verheij-Full

IT'S hard to view the drowning of a six year old boy at South Ballina Beach as anything other than a tragic accident.

A rogue wave swept the young boy off his feet and out into water in a matter of seconds.

Perhaps regular users of the beach would be aware of its treacherous nature but not visitors from interstate, as this boy and his father were.

The full details of this tragedy will come out when the Coroner delivers his report and now is not the time for finger pointing or blame.

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But this area of our coastline is indeed a fatal shore as it is the same beach Joseph and Carole Sherry drowned in 2010.

The beach is unpatrolled but there are signs warning against its dangers at the main entry points.

The reaction of a couple of rock fishermen on Saturday were very brave.

Even with the close proximity of an Angel Ring it was not enough to prevent this tragedy from occurring.

No doubt there will be an examination of whether enough was done to prevent this drowning.

I am still convinced that the signage at our beaches is almost too polite and too easy to ignore.

If there was a big neon sign at danger points flashing warning signs and symbols in several languages surely nothing is too over the top when it comes to safety.

Conditions on Saturday after an East Coast Low had ripped through the region were not conducive to going to the beach.

People need to heed the weather and warnings and stay away.