Christmas long weekend proves deadly with multiple drowning deaths at beaches and lakes

It's been a deadly Christmas weekend across Australian beaches and lakes, with five people drowning in separate incidents.

A lifesaver on a jetski

A lifesaver on a jetski near the Southport Surf Life Saving Club on the Gold Coast. Source: AAP / Jono Searle

Key Points
  • Three Victorians, a South Australian woman, and a Taiwanese man drowned over the Christmas long weekend.
  • Two young Victorian girls were rescued in a near-drowning at St Kilda Beach.
  • A young girl is being treated in hospital after being pulled from a pool in Sydney.
Three Victorians, a South Australian woman, and a Taiwanese man have in a deadly long weekend on .

A 17-year-old Pakenham boy died near Mordialloc, south of Melbourne, on Monday afternoon.

He was found unresponsive in the water after an extensive air search but could not be revived.

Earlier in the afternoon, another Victorian man drowned at a lake in Ebden in the state's northeast.

Onlookers saw the man, believed to be aged in his 30s, struggling in the water after chasing his dog at Kookaburra Point.
He was pulled to shore and taken to hospital but he later died.

A 73-year-old South Australian woman drowned at Seacliff, south of Adelaide, about 7pm on Monday.

She was pulled unconscious from the water and could not be revived.

The three Boxing Day deaths come after a 19-year-old St Albans man drowned on Christmas Day at Lorne in Victoria's southwest.

The body of a Taiwanese man who went missing on Christmas Day was also recovered from a lake at an abandoned mine site in Western Australia on Monday.
The 33-year-old disappeared at Black Diamond Lake near Collie, about 200km south of Perth, on Sunday afternoon. Friends raised the alarm about 2.30pm but a police-led air, land and water search failed to find the man.

Specialist divers were deployed to the search area on Monday, with a police spokesman announcing the man's body had been found about 5pm.

"They were swimming and, unfortunately, the gentleman got into some trouble while he was swimming and never made it to shore," Acting Senior Sergeant Deansaid.

"It is tragic ... it's a terrible time for this type of thing. There's never a good time for it."

Victorian, WA, and SA police all said they would prepare reports for coroners on the deaths in their states.

Young girls rescued from near-drownings

Meanwhile, two young Victorian girls were rescued in a near-drowning at St Kilda Beach in Melbourne's southeast.

The girls, aged 10 and 11, were seen struggling in waters off the pier on Monday evening when mounted branch officers came to their rescue.

The girls were assessed by paramedics but did not need to go to hospital.

But a young girl is being treated in a Sydney children's hospital after being pulled from a pool in Wentworth Park on Monday evening.

People at the scene performed CPR on her before paramedics arrived and continued treatment, NSW Ambulance said.

A helicopter ambulance team also arrived but the girl was taken by road to Westmead Children's Hospital.

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3 min read
Published 27 December 2022 10:41am
Updated 27 December 2022 11:38am
Source: AAP, SBS



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