Boy, 3, dies after found floating in Broadwater swimming enclosure

A toddler found motionless at a Gold Coast swimming enclosure this morning has died with witnesses fighting back tears as they recalled desperate efforts to find and then resuscitate him.

The area where a young boy died on the Gold Coast this morning. Picture: Nigel Hallett

There are calls for lifeguards to be permanently based at a Gold Coast swimming lagoon as a family mourns a young boy who drowned at the popular location the day before Christmas.

The three-year-old Logan boy drowned at a lagoon on the Gold Coast Broadwater at Labrador, near one of the Tourist Strip’s most popular fish and chip shops.

The boy’s family is devastated at his death, while locals have also launched a petition to have lifeguards permanently based at the spot, which is hugely popular with young families.

The youngster has family across the south Pacific, with relatives expressing their heartache on social media.

Family contacted by The Sunday Mail declined to comment as many relatives overseas were yet to learn of the tragedy.

The boy was frolicking on the shore of the lagoon before disappearing under water.

Witnesses who saw the tragedy unfold questioned why there are no lifeguards on duty at the popular swimming spot, which is protected from currents and swells by a sandbank, but has a sharp drop-off to deeper water and is frequently visited by families with young children.

A similar swimming enclosure a few kilometres further south has a permanent lifeguard presence, but Labrador’s Ian Dipple Lagoon only has volunteer surf lifesavers on summer weekends.

In a statement, a spokesperson for Gold Coast City Council said: “Any petitions submitted to the City of Gold Coast will be considered as per the requirements outlined on the City website.”

Emergency crews desperately tried to save the three-year-old boy, but he was pronounced deceased shortly after arriving at Gold Coast University Hospital.

The child was discovered about 9am.

Ambulance crews rushed to the scene and commenced CPR in front of horrified onlookers.

Two friends have told how they begged the little boy to live after he was dragged from the water.

An ambulance at the scene of the Christmas Eve morning drowning at Labrador. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

The men were relaxing on the foreshore on the Broadwater at Labrador when the Christmas Eve tragedy unfolded.

Too upset to give their names, they fought back tears as they recalled seeing the young boy running along the sand before entering the lagoon and disappearing about 9am.

A full-scale search followed but it was several crucial minutes before the boy was pulled from the water.

Paramedics tried desperately to save him, performing CPR at the scene and on the journey to hospital, but he was declared deceased a short time later.

“When I saw the ambulance guys working on him I was screaming: “Please God let him live,” said one of the men.

“People were staring at me but I didn’t care, I just wanted him to make it.

“I was crying my eyes out. It was horrible.”

His friend questioned why there were no lifeguards at the scene, which is a popular family swimming area near a famous fish and chip shop.

Originally published as Boy, 3, dies after found floating in Broadwater swimming enclosure