BODYBOARDER IN BEACH TRAGEDY
20-YEAR-OLD MAN DIES AT TREACHEROUS SPOT
KATE PARASKEVOS, KRISTY MUIR & ANDREW POTTS
THE infamously treacherous waters off Fingal Head have claimed the life of a 20-yearold bodyboarder in yet another deadly incident at the rocky point.
Emergency services were called to Fingal Headland Point just after 11.30am yesterday following reports a man had become distressed in the water.
Police were told the man lost his board and attempted to climb on to the rocks as his distraught family watched on.
The man, whose name is yet to be released, was pulled from the water around 1.30pm with NSW Ambulance paramedics commencing CPR but tragically could not be revived.
State Duty Officer Jimmy Keogh praised the efforts of all those involved in the rescue effort.
“All the lifesavers involved went above and beyond in their efforts to both locate and then try to save the missing man,” he said.
“It was a challenging and emotional situation. I know they worked really hard to get a positive outcome.
“Unfortunately we didn’t have the outcome we wanted and our sincere condolences go to the man’s family and friends in this difficult time.”
Fingal local Jarod Thomas, 18, was among the crowd who gathered to witness the rescue – at the same place Mr he Thomas had a narrow escape just last year.
Mr Thomas said he almost died at the spot in December when he was knocked off his surfboard in big swell.
“It is such a dangerous spot and it’s really hard for the surf life savers to undertake rescues because of the rocks,” he said.
“The conditions make it really hard to actually get crews down there to pull people from the rocks in time, you just get pushed into them over and over.”
Mr Thomas said he fought to stay afloat for two hours, being constantly smashed into the rocks.
“There was a point where I thought, this is it, I’m going to die,” he said.
“It was really scary, but I just fought. I nearly gave up because I was so exhausted.
“I was so lucky to come out alive. Any longer and I would have died.”
The Westpac rescue helicopter and surf life saving crews arrived to help Mr Thomas but conditions made it diffciult for them to reach him and he was eventually able to pull himself out.
“I vomited from the exhaustion when I got back on shore but I was so relieved to have survived,” he said.
Yesterday’s death occurred close to the scene where local man Ryan Martin lost his life in March last year while trying to save a family from drowning.
Ryan was one of half a dozen people who rushed to the aid of a Toowoomba family on Good Friday.
In a similar circumstance, New Zealander Aggie Auelua, 26, died when she dived into seas off Fingal Head to rescue nine-year-old Max Hennessy on October 10, 2015.