PRAYERS FOR HIS DEAD MATE
A CLOSE friend of Indian student Ravneet Singh Gill (right) who drowned at Duranbah beach on Christmas Day sits hunched on the beach yesterday, seeking answers to a tragedy that has confounded his friends and the wider community. The man himself was pulled from the water in a mass rescue. D-bah has become a bathing blackspot, prompting warnings from lifeguards and raising questions about whether it should be closed permanently for swimming.
INTERNATIONAL student Ravneet Singh Gill had one plan for Christmas Day away from his family: go to the beach.
After spending the morning with friends, the popular Southern Cross University business student went to Duranbah Beach for the dip in the ocean he had long been looking forward to.
It was a decision that ultimately led to the 22-year-old’s death.
“It was his plan to swim at the beach. Another friend said we’ll swim at the pool but he said we should go down to the beach,” said friend and coworker Sukhmander Dhaliwal.
“He was (looking forward) to Christmas too, to enjoy his holiday.”
As the tide started to run out to sea about 4.45pm, the shopping trolley collector who had lived at Tweed Heads for the past two years and his seven friends were caught in a rip current. Lifeguards on the beach rushed to help them.
But despite what was described as a “textbook” rescue by lifeguards, Mr Singh was found in the water face down and unconscious.
He was pronounced dead on the sand by critical care paramedics after about 30 minutes of CPR.
The seven other men rescued were taken to the Tweed Hospital for observation and later released.
Mr Dhaliwal said Mr Singh had been considered the best swimmer in the group.
“He knew how to swim, the other guys don’t – he was very excited for the day off, he was telling me his plan,” he said.
Returning to the beach yesterday, less than 24 hours after Mr Singh’s death, his friends said they were standing in waist deep water and playing in the mild swell, which was below 0.5m, on Christmas Day.
They said they were hit by a wave and lost their footing before finding themselves unable to touch the bottom.
“The water was only (waist height) and there was a wave, they were trying to come out but they could not, the water was pulling back,” said community social worker Manjit Boparai. “They were all in danger, they struggled in there, in that area.”
Mr Boparai said Mr Singh’s close friends had been supportive and he was working with authorities to return Mr Singh’s body to his family in the Indian state of Punjab.
“For religious reasons we don’t need a post-mortem examination,” he said.
Gurpreet Singh, who said he had known Mr Singh for close to six years, struggled to hold back tears as he described his friend as a hard worker who was popular.
“He doesn’t speak much, he was a quiet guy, but he would do things for people all the time,” Mr Singh said.
“He had so many close friends. He was just a goldenhearted person.”