Nick Park: Lake Illawarra police officer hailed a hero after tragic Port Kembla drownings

An Illawarra Police officer has been labelled a hero after he dived into rough seas in an attempt to rescue a group of rock fishermen swept into the ocean.

An Illawarra cop has been hailed a hero after he risked his own life to try and save a group of Sydney fishermen, two of which died, at a notorious fishing spot.

While colleagues and members of the public have praised Sergeant Nick Park of Lake Illawarra Highway Patrol as a hero, he said he wasn’t quite comfortable with the title.

“It doesn’t sit well with me,” he said. “It’s just something I would hope I’d never hesitate to do, there was a lot of people there working together but there’s a lot of people that should take credit here.”

Sergeant Park sprung into action late on Friday afternoon, after three fishermen were swept from Honeycomb Rocks at Port Kembla into the rough sea.

The incident happened just three weeks after three other men drowned at the same spot.

Lakemba man Mahade Khan, 30 and Muzaffar Ahammed, 37, from Wiley Park, did not survive Friday’s tragedy.

A third man, 42, has since been released from hospital.

All three were fully clothed and struggling to stay afloat when Sergeant Park and another brave member of the public dived into the water and paddled towards them.

Sergeant Nick Park of Lake Illawarra Highway Patrol. Picture: Madeline Crittenden

Armed with an inflatable device, Sergeant Park swam toward one of the men, realising just how serious the situation was.

“The weather was what really struck me, just how quickly it turned bad,” he said.

“The rain started getting really heavy and it was hard to see and then the wind came up, the swell started to increase.”

Sargent Park zeroed in on the 42-year-old man fearing he’d lost consciousness.

He made the decision to swim toward him, never worrying about his own safety.

“I think the adrenaline kicks in along with your training and I think all of us, not just me, went straight into police mode,” he said.

“You just think of the task you’ve got to do and your anxiety outside that is pretty low.”

Emergency services at the scene of a drowning at Honeycomb Rocks at Hill 60.

Two men sadly died following the incident.

He spent the next 20 minutes treading water, trying to keep two of the men alive as they waited to be rescued by an inflatable rescue boat. In the meantime, a rescue chopper had winched a third man from the water. He was pronounced dead soon after.

“They (the men) were heavy, the person I spoke to was clearly in shock and my worry was that if he lost consciousness he wouldn’t be able to stay afloat himself, if he were to slip under we’d lose him,” Sergeant Park said.

“It was extremely difficult but having the (flotation devices) probably helped.”

Sergeant Park’s upbringing on the Northern Beaches also played a large role in the rescue, given he’d spent most of his childhood in the ocean. He’d competed in Nippers as a child, before continuing his training with Surf Lifesaving Australia.

A fisherman at the popular fishing spot following the drownings. Picture: Adam Yip

Sergeant Park’s said the experience would leave a lasting impact on him.

“It was horrible, I got into the rescue boat with the two men and it was extremely distressing to realised (one had) drowned,” he said.

While he didn’t want to accept the hero title, Sergeant Park said the good Samaritan who dived in with him deserved huge praise.

“I think he’s the hero,” he said. “He risked his own life in a really difficult circumstance to preserve a life.”

Lake Illawarra Commander Superintendent Dean Smith said he was proud of Sergeant’s Park’s acts, but also ttwo other officers who were injured when they were hit by a rogue wave while keeping a watchful eye over the rescue.

“It was clearly a chaotic scene,” he said.

“Their response was swift and always professional, they are always putting themselves in positions where there is a level of risk, but they make good decisions, they knew they had to act … they did the best they could.”

The surviving member of the trio was released from hospital on Monday morning, however, superintendent Smith reminded people of the dangers of rock fishing, urging people to wear the appropriate safety gear.