A fourth person has died in Victoria’s worst beach tragedy in nearly 20 years.
On Wednesday, a woman and a man in their 20s and a 43-year-old tourist from India died after being pulled from the water at an unpatrolled beach off the coast of Phillip Island, south-east of Melbourne.
Police said a 20-year-old was rescued and flown to the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne in a critical condition. On Thursday, police confirmed she had died.
The three people in their 20s were residents of Clyde in Melbourne’s south-east.
Authorities were called to the beach near Forrest Caves about 3:30pm on Wednesday after reports four people were in trouble.
The beach is locally known for treacherous conditions and police believe the four swimmers were caught in a rip.
The swimmers, who police believe are all related, were in the water about 4 kilometres from two patrolled beaches, Woolamai Beach and Smith’s Beach.
Swimmers urged to stick to patrolled beaches
On Thursday, Life Saving Victoria’s (LSV) Kane Treloar said the tragedy marked a near 20-year low for the state.
“It’s been almost 20 years since we’ve seen a single event that’s resulted in such a high loss of life in Victorian waters,” Mr Treloar said.
“It’s not since 2005, with the tragedy that occurred at Stingray Bay, that we’ve seen these sort of numbers.”
Mr Treloar said lifeguards were working hard to prevent similar incidents from occurring, with almost 600 rescues along this summer.
“Our lifeguards are doing a tremendous job … working to reduce the number of fatal drownings occurring,” he said.
“We’ve performed almost 600 rescues this season to date.
“We’re at a range of sites right across the state, so as we come into this long weekend, we have a safe place for everyone to swim.
“The most important thing to remember is that if we can’t see you, we can’t save you.”
Nineteen people have now died in Victorian waters this summer.
“We are seeing more drowning than we traditionally would do,” LSV general manager Liam Krige said.
“It just goes to highlight the important safety message. When you are heading out to the coastline you need to prioritise water safety and head to a patrolled location.”
Mr Krige said the avoidable nature of the deaths made it all the more tragic.
“We have to remember that drowning is largely preventable,” he said.
“It is preventable by people making water safety their priority, seeking that advice before they head out to those locations.”
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan offered her condolences to those affected by the “terrible tragedy”.
“To be out enjoying a day with family and friends in a beautiful part of our state, to end in this tragedy, must be so devastating,” she said.
Ms Allan said the government was working with Life Saving Victoria to ensure water-safety messages were effectively communicated to all members of the community.
