Beach holiday tragedy

08.04.2010

A BRITISH roan whose body was pulled from
the surf near Elouera beach on Monday night
had arrived in Australia just three days earlier.
The man, 59, was at the beach with his stepson,
15, when lie disappeared beneath the
waves at Wanda beach.
Elouera Surf Lifesaving Club president Peter
Carney said the teenager was searching for
his stepfather when lie got into trouble.
Off-duty volunteer lifesavers, who had been
practising surf rescues using an inflatable
"rubber duck" boat about 200 metres away,
came to their aid.
Mr Carney said the club members, who had
remained on the beach after their patrol finished
at 4pm, were notified by onlookers.
"A member of the public alerted their to a
situation and they responded," he said. "My
understanding is that the stepson and
another party were looking for him.
"They tried to find him and told a member
of the public who came to Elouera [and] the
boys got the duck back in the water."
Lifesavers rescued the youth but could find
no sign of his stepfather.
Elouera surf club members called triple-0
and police sent a helicopter to help search for
the missing man, whose body was finally
located at 6.45pm.
A Miranda police spokesman said the helicopter
crew found the man's body, which was
retrieved by lifesavers. He could not be revived.
"He had been under for an hour ... It was a
significant amount of time," Mr Carney said.
The youth was treated in Sutherland Hospital
for hypothermia and shock before lie was
discharged Tuesday.
Authorities could not say whether the boy's
mother was on the beach at the time. Miranda
police will prepare a report for the coroner.