Shock at no-go zone
WITNESSES have recalled the frightening moment a man was swept away in rapids near the site of a young woman’s recent drowning in the Babinda Boulders no-go zone.
The famous Far North swimming spot was popular on Mother’s Day, with the vast majority of visitors keeping safe and obeying the warning signs.
However, one couple flouted the rules and entered the prohibited area – and it very nearly ended in tragedy.
Division 1 Cairns Regional Councillor Brett Moller was at the Boulders on Sunday when a man slipped into the rushing water and was carried away downstream.
It was very near the spot where 18-year-old White Rock woman Madison Tam was killed last month.
“My wife and I were following our two daughters, and they saw it happen,” Cr Moller said.
“By the time we got there, he was at the bottom pool, crawling out.
“They were on the rocks and he slipped – and at one stage she (the woman he was with) stood up and almost went over as well.
“It’s not far at all from where that tragedy happened.
“It shows how quickly it can happen – one slip and he was in.”
Cr Moller described the man as a “big, strong fellow” but said he was at the mercy of the rushing waters as his flailing body was washed to a lower pool.
“He’s just lucky it wasn’t a dangerous stretch running through one of the granite chutes which are further upstream,” he said.
“Those inherent dangers are there if you put yourself at risk like that.
“The signage is there, the barricades are there.
“They would have had to walk under the signage to get there.”
Cr Moller hoped his words would serve as a reminder to people not to put their lives at risk in the treacherous natural waterway.
“Hopefully we can just keep getting the message out there and people will start to listen,” he said.
“People are ignoring the signs at their own peril.
“People have to respect and appreciate the dangers in our waterholes. I don’t want another life lost and another family and community to suffer from someone’s unnecessary risk-taking.”