The search for a missing 11-year-old boy who was swept out to sea while fishing with his father and brothers has entered its third day.
Emergency services were called to the Inlet Channel, on the New South Wales Central Coast, about 5.15pm on Sunday after reports a child had been swept into the ocean.
Police said a 43-year-old father was crossing the canal with his four children (aged 11, nine, seven and three) when the oldest was swept into the water.
Bystanders rushed to the father’s aid and took care of the other three children, while he desperately tried to reach his other son.
However, he did not succeed and the 11-year-old boy was swept away by the strong tide.
Rescue helicopters, water police and surf lifeguards searched for the boy until after dark, before the search resumed on Monday morning.
Witnesses recalled seeing the father helping his younger sons cross the canal while the eldest son walked behind them.
It is understood the boy walked with a camp chair on his back as the family crossed the famous canal. It is not known if the missing boy knew how to swim.
The 43-year-old father was crossing the entrance channel with his four children (aged 11, nine, seven and three) when the eldest was swept into the water.
The distraught father is seen hugging his youngest son shortly after the eldest was swept out to sea on Sunday afternoon.
“We heard screams and we looked and saw a man running through the water,” Sarah Bailey said. 7 news.
‘And then we saw a little boy in the waves with his arm raised. I was really struggling.’
Another witness, Gary Phillis, said the boy “disappeared in a couple of seconds” and that his father was “hysterical.”
Two bystanders helped care for the man’s youngest children while he desperately tried to rescue his son.
The distraught father was later photographed sitting on the sand hugging his youngest son tightly as he was comforted.
It is understood the mother had not gone fishing but traveled to the Central Coast with family and friends on Monday when the search resumed.
The family, who do not speak English, said they “would like to thank the community, residents and locals” for their support and assistance during “this extremely difficult time.”
Tuggerah Lakes Inspector David Piddington told media on Monday that NSW Police has a specialist family liaison officer assisting the family.
“The family is very distraught and, as I said, our family liaison officer and chaplains are very supportive and we will help them as much as we can,” he said.
Police divers found the boy’s chair, towel and esky before the search was called off shortly after 4pm on Monday.
The boy was swept out to sea less than 20 minutes after the life-saving volunteers finished their patrols for the day.
The Entrance Channel is one of the most dangerous places on the Central Coast due to strong currents during tidal changes.
The extensive search and rescue operation (pictured) resumed on Tuesday.
The father desperately tried to reach his son, who was swept away by the strong tide, but was unable to do so (in the photo, men believed to be relatives or friends guard the stretch of water where the boy was swept into the sea)
The treacherous channel, known as the “black point”, connects the Tuggerah Lakes to the ocean.
Many people cross the channel at low tide to return to the Entrance car park or to access the North Entrance.
However, when the tide changes, the strong currents that drag the water out to sea become a tremendous force.
In 2016, two fishermen drowned in the entrance channel after falling into the water while fishing.
In 2012, Keon Sbrugnera, 15, also drowned after getting stuck on a cliff while swimming with friends.
That same year, a strong current during an incoming tide swept a Toyota HiLux ute into the middle of the inlet channel.
An excavator had to be called to help lift the ute out of the water.
The 11-year-old boy’s family is of Arab origin, prompting warning calls in several languages for those unaware of the canal’s hidden dangers.
At several points near the canal there are signs warning bathers of the dangers.
The signs, written in English, warn people to “be careful: fast changing currents and deep holes.”
The warning also states that the area was a “known hazard for fishing, night walking, swimming” and urged people to visit the nearest The Entry, which is a patrolled beach about 400 meters away.
Locals believe that the warning signs are not enough to deter visitors and that three separate stairs and handrails leading directly to the water actually attract people to the canal.
The canal at The Entry is a notorious danger spot as shifting sands push strong currents out to sea (pictured)
Locals believe that the signs are not enough to deter visitors and that three separate stairs and handrails actually draw people towards the water.
The entrance channel warning signs are also written only in English, which is problematic for non-English speaking visitors.
Surf Life Saving Central Coast chief executive Michael Hyslop said the effectiveness of the signs would be considered.
Hyslop added that signs were a constant problem for the club, particularly warning people whose first language was not English.
“Yes, look, there are signs down there and all of those things will be part of the investigation and also ongoing,” Hyslop said. The daily telegraph.
“Obviously we always have a difficult time getting our message out there, (but) as I said today, our goal is to find an 11-year-old boy who is missing.”