Man missing in ocean, woman found dead at Sydney’s eastern beaches
Updated ,first published
A swimmer is missing and another person has died in a double tragedy on Sydney’s east coast in the early hours of the new year, while the chief executive of Surf Life Saving NSW laments the “horrifying” drownings in the past 24 hours.
A man is feared dead after being caught in a dangerous wave that shocked hundreds of spectators gathered on the shore at Coogee Beach to welcome the new year. In a separate incident, the body of a woman was found in nearby Maroubra after she had been struck by a wave and washed into the ocean.
First responders were called to Coogee shortly after 6am on Thursday following reports that a man believed to be in his 20s had drowned due to rough seas. He was among three people caught in a strong current coming from the middle of the beach, and the other two were rescued by off-duty lifeguards.
A uniformed police officer rushed into the water, fully clothed, to rescue the submerged man and joined nearby swimmers trying to keep him afloat. Rescue teams were unable to bring the man to shore.
The search for the missing swimmer continued at noon on Thursday. Rescue helicopters hovered about 50 meters offshore, while surf lifeguards criss-crossed the bay on jet skis.
While the maritime area command is assisting the police, paramedics are administering shock treatment to some spectators.
Some of those rescued, after being assessed by paramedics, covered themselves in blankets and remained on the beach to monitor the search until 10 a.m.
To follow the current, a green paint marker was left in the rip area at around 10.15am, about 50 meters offshore, near the middle of the beach.
Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steven Pearce said extreme surf conditions had hampered search efforts in Coogee: “Overnight it got wilder and stronger again.”
The incident came after the body of a 25-year-old woman in Maroubra was washed away by a wave, crashing into the Mahon rock pool and into the ocean at 5am on Thursday.
Police were called to Maroubra Beach around 4am on Thursday following reports that the woman had crashed into a wave. A police helicopter, maritime command and several NSW ambulance paramedics searched the area and located the body believed to be that of the missing woman at around 5am.
The woman, who Pearce said is a Chinese citizen, has not yet been officially identified. A report will be prepared for the coroner. On Thursday, 68 beaches were closed in NSW, including Coogee and Maroubra, and most of them in Sydney.
A dangerous surf warning was issued for the Sydney coastline on Thursday morning, with the Bureau of Meteorology urging swimmers to stay out of the water and areas exposed to surf due to the high risk of danger.
Boat crews are warned not to cross shallow waters and ocean bars, while rock fishermen are encouraged to find platforms that are not directly exposed to rough surf.
The surf warning has also been activated on the Hunter Coast, Macquarie Coast, Coffs Coast and Byron Coast and will remain in force until at least Thursday evening.
Waves along the Sydney coastline were reaching more than three meters on Thursday morning, according to meteorologist Jiwon Park, who predicted the waves would begin to ease on Friday.
“Sydney is currently reporting the highest waves… [but] These conditions could affect the entire coast today,” Park said.
Park said that the low pressure system over New Zealand was responsible for these conditions and found that the system brought long-lasting and regular “periodic waves” when it reached the NSW coast.
Pearce implored Sydneysiders not to subject themselves to dangerous surf conditions.
“We are insisting, no actually begging, that if that beach is closed, people should not go into the water today,” he said.
“If you don’t see a lifeguard on the beach, if you don’t see those red and yellow flags, don’t go into the water today.”
Death in Maroubra came one day after one man died in Palm BeachAfter his small boat was overturned by a large wave and landed on nearby rocks shortly after noon.
It was stated that a 14-year-old boy, who was a passenger on the boat, was still missing and the search for him would continue on Thursday morning. Another man who was on the overturned boat was taken to hospital after he was found with serious injuries to his left leg on a nearby rock platform, about 25 meters away from the overturned boat.
He was winched from the rocks by a rescue helicopter before being lowered into a nature clearing near the coastal car park for treatment.
Authorities believe there were three people on the boat at the time of the accident and it cannot be confirmed whether there is any relationship between the three.
Pearce feared NSW was entering a “terrible period” as he lamented “four separate drowning deaths” on Wednesday and Thursday.
“We were hoping to start the year [with] “It’s a fantastic new start, the year 2025 has been extremely turbulent for all emergency services,” he said.
“I cannot stand here today and say happy new year because there are families whose lives have been irreparably damaged in the last 24 hours.”
A 50-year-old man required resuscitation at Avoca Beach on Wednesday evening after off-duty lifeguards found the man underwater after bodysurfing a wave around 7.10pm.
He was brought to the sand where CPR was performed before a defibrillator was applied to his chest. While the man was taken to hospital by plane, it was learned that his condition was critical.
A child underwent CPR at Puckey’s Beach near Wollongong on Wednesday before being taken to hospital along with another child who had trouble surfing.
While a group of children were rescued by bystanders on the beach in the Royal National Park, surfers rushed to the aid of the father and three children who were caught in the waves at Broulee Beach on the south coast.
Surf lifeguards have carried out 85 rescues since Christmas Day; The increase “caught everyone off guard,” Pearce said. Coastal drowning deaths in NSW have increased by 26 per cent in the last six months.
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Daniel Lo Surdo is a breaking news reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald. He previously ran The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s national news live blog.Connect via email.
