Woman dead after ‘misadventure’ at Diamond Bay Reserve

A woman has died after falling from cliffs at Diamond Bay Reserve, in Sydney’s east, while her picture was being taken by a friend. A witness has revealed the 27-year-old “lost her footing and fell” but shockingly, an hour later tourists were back at the site taking pictures along the cliff.

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A witness to the tragic death of a 27-year-old woman who fell from a Vaucluse cliff has detailed how heroic rock climbers raced to save her life

The witness, who did not wished to be named, said friends had watched on as the young woman fell from the rocks after having her photo taken on the edge of Diamond Bay Reserve about 11.20am.

“The friend was taking a picture of her, she sat back and went to stand and literally lost her footing and fell,” she said.

Emergency services arrive at the scene at Diamond Bay, Vaucluse this morning where a woman is believed to have died from misadventure.

“These guys were rock climbing at the time and performed CPR on the woman … him and a friend were climbing and they heard the screaming of the lady who was taking a picture.

“The friend needed a couple of men to help her all the way up (the path).

“I saw the fiance come running down there (45 minutes later) and then he got rushed into the ambulance with shock.”

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PolAir retrieved the body of the woman, who has yet to be identified, as bystanders were being consoled at the scene after the tragedy, a site which is popular among tourists visiting Sydney’s picturesque coastline.

Police are currently treating the incident as misadventure.

The woman has yet to be identified, though it is understood family have been informed.

Within an hour of the woman’s body being retrieved, tourists were back at the site, climbing the fence and taking pictures along the cliff face again.

One of those was Simon Plotkowski, a university student who was taking pictures along the edge.

“I’m not scared because of the height,” he said.

Both he and Yene Joe, who was also beyond the fence taking pictures, said they found out about the location because of Instagram.

“Only certain places are dangerous,” Ms Joe said.

“I only found out someone had died when a woman was yelling at me.”

Local residents have been raising the alarm for the past six months about tourists risking their lives by climbing down on the cliff-face.

A helicopter flies over the scene of the tragic fall.

Shocking images had emerged in April of thrillseekers breaching barricades to take selfies on the edge, with the trend believed to have been started by an Asian celebrity which has inspired scores of copycats on a daily basis since.

“We had reports of approximately a 40m fall down into the water,” special operations paramedic Robi Reiner said.

“They administered CPR to the patient (on the cliff edge) however by the time we arrived she was deceased.

“The initial reports we had coming through was that she was taking some breaths however the injuries she sustained resulted in her passing away.

Residents in the exclusive suburb rallied for action from Waverley Council earlier this year, warning of dire consequences should nothing be done.

Emergency services scale the cliffs at Diamond Bay Reserve after a woman died after falling this morning.

In June, Council had passed a motion to investigate a string of measures at the picturesque spot, including more CCTV and ranger patrols, though it was not due to come back until later this year.

“As a community we have been very vocal about our concerns,” Vaucluse local Michael Hyams said.

“We hate to be proven correct but this tragedy totally vindicates our concerns in the worst possible way.”

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