Inquest on flood death

AN 11-year-old boy who died after being pulled into a stormwater drain near Wollongong has been remembered as a “caring, generous, kind, happy boy” who was one of a kind.

Acting state coroner Teresa O’Sullivan yesterday delivered her findings into the death of Ryan Teasdale, who drowned at Unanderra in March 2017.

The boy had been riding his body board down a slope at Riley Park during heavy rain before he was forced by the flow of water into a stormwater inlet. The coroner said his death highlighted the significant risks arising from children being near open stormwater inlets during heavy flows.

The risk posed by the Riley Park inlet was compounded by its location – in a park within a residential area and with unrestricted public access.

The coroner acknowledged Wollongong City Council had introduced changes to the site since Ryan’s death to prevent further tragedy and had assessed other possible risk sites.

She made two recommendations: that Public Works Advisory NSW and Local Government NSW develop guidelines for the safe design of stormwater inlets, and that her inquest findings be sent to all NSW councils. The inquest was attended by Ryan’s family, with his aunt reading a statement to the court describing him as a “caring, generous, kind, happy boy”, “a constant light in all of our lives”.