Northern NSW dad Matt Van Dommele warns parents about swim safety after two-year-old son Harlen’s tragic pool death

A “broken” northern NSW father who lost his “perfect little boy” in a tragic accident is urging parents to keep swim safety top of mind this summer. Warning: Distressing content.

Matt Van Dommele, wife Brittany and his three children are supposed to be enjoying the summer holiday of a lifetime in Bali.

Instead, the couple are trying to find words to explain to their daughters, Eviee, 5, and River, 4, why their baby brother isn’t coming home.

The “broken” northern NSW father, 32, and mother, 30, who lost their “perfect little boy” in a tragic accident three weeks ago, are urging parents to keep swim safety top of mind these school holidays. Mr Van Dommele warns the unthinkable can happen.

Matt Van Dommele and his son Harlen, who tragically died by drowning in November. Picture: Supplied

On November 14, Matt and Brittany, who live on a 10 hectare Teven property, near Ballina, were packing for a dream pre-Christmas holiday. Three days later would be their five-year wedding anniversary.

That morning, Mrs Dommele dropped her eldest daughter at preschool and had her youngest daughter alongside for errands.

Mr Van Dommele revelled in a morning of play with his only son, Harlen, 2 – a “beautiful, soft soul with a cheeky side”.

“We went to the park, got his favourite drink – a babyccino, threw rocks in the dam and did chores together,” he said.

After the two-year-old wore himself out, Mr Van Dommele sat Harlen down with snacks and put his new favourite movie on, Super Mario Bros.

For safety, he shut the doors to the home while he went outside to finish chores.

Then he felt a “panicked, sick feeling in the guts”.

“I couldn’t see him in front of the TV so I ran around the house screaming out for him,” Mr Van Dommele said.

“That’s when I found him at the bottom of the pool.”

Harlen managed to open the doors and climb a ladder into the above-ground swimming pool.

Mr Van Dommele, sobbing, told NewsLocal: “I had to scoop him out and start CPR. I couldn’t save him.”

Harlen was rushed to Lismore Base Hospital. Tragically, he could not be revived.

“It broke us. I’m broken,” Mr Van Dommele said.

Harlen’s father is urging parents to take swim safety seriously this summer. Picture: Supplied

Harlen’s funeral was held at Parkview Funerals in Ballina on November 24. A day the dad called “the toughest of my life”.

At the funeral, Mr and Mrs Van Dommele gave a touching tribute: “This tragic accident will remain with us for the rest of our lives but so will the beautiful memory of our perfect little boy Harlen.

“Harlen was a cheeky, motivated young man who made us feel loved by being a beautiful, soft soul just wanting cuddles and kisses from mum and dad,” he said.

The typical boy “who loved monster trucks and dinosaurs”, had a “great imagination” and “the cheekiest smile”.

“Mummy and daddy love you Harlen and would give anything to have you back. You are forever young in our hearts. I wish I could have seen the man you would have grown up to become.”

The funeral of Harlen Van Dommele. Picture: Supplied

When his daughters ask where their baby brother is, Mr Van Dommele said: “as a parent you never know what to say.”

“You want to say he’s in a better place but he will always be with us. But what better place than with his loving family,” he said.

“The other day we unpacked all the Christmas stuff with the girls for a sense of normality. “The reality is we are ripped apart. We just never thought this could happen.”

He plays the tragedy over in his mind, and “still can’t get my head around what went wrong”.

Mr Van Dommele urged parents to “do whatever it takes” to ensure their pool is secured.

The Van Dommele family Brittany, Harlen, 2, Matt, Eviee, 5, and River, 4. Picture: Supplied

Swim safety ambassador Laurie Lawrence spoke of the harrowing reality of dangers kids face around water.

“Sadly, parents out there need to know that if you have a child under five, you have a ticket in a raffle to be at a funeral this summer. I hope you don’t win it. That’s why the Kids Alive message is so important,” he said.

“December is Check Your Pool Gate Month. It’s a timely reminder that 50 per cent of people who have pools admit to leaving the gate open when kids are around. More than half of that 50 per cent admit their pool gates are faulty.

“Kids are ingenious. They are mobile, inquisitive, crawling, walking, running. They are out there, the world is their oyster and they are attracted to water like magnets.”

Mr Lawrence said children aged one to two were most at risk.

“If kids fall over in the yard they run to mummy, crying. But when they fall in water, it’s silent,” he said.

Laurie Lawrence stressed the importance of constant supervision and pool gate maintenance. Picture: Supplied

“There was a report out of South Australia some years ago where a child drowned in a dog bowl. That’s how dangerous water can be.

“Since the year 2000, 53 soldiers have been killed in overseas conflicts. In that same period of time, more than 600 children under the age of five have drowned.

“It’s more dangerous to be a kid in Australia with a backyard swimming pool than it is to be a soldier in a war.

“Families are never the same. Once they lose a little one, it doesn't just affect them, but the siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles – and the communities they live in.”

There is a GoFundMe in support of the Van Dommele family, which has raised $59,000.

According to the Royal Lifesaving Society’s National Drowning Report 2022/23, 16 children aged under four have drowned. Twenty five per cent of deaths occurred in a pool.

Originally published as Northern NSW dad Matt Van Dommele warns parents about swim safety after two-year-old son Harlen’s tragic pool death