Mayor’s plea to beachgoers: Be prepared!

BASS Coast Mayor Cr Clare Le Serve has issued a statement of heartfelt sympathy to the victims’ families, and gratitude to the first responders, for the second time in 13 days following the mass drowning incident at Forrest Caves on Wednesday evening.

Speaking on Gippsland ABC Radio on Thursday morning, Cr Le Serve urged those visiting Bass Coast’s beaches to do their research first and to find the patrolled beaches before they come.

Cr Le Serve first offered her support to the family and friends impacted by the tragedy, and also the first responders and emergency services personnel who couldn’t help but be affected by the incident.

“It's just a tragedy. It's something that just saddens our whole community, and it deeply affects our community,” said Cr Le Serve.

Asked what message she had for those coming to “so many beautiful beaches” around Bass Coast, Cr Le Serve urged people to be prepared.

“We've got about 97 kilometres of beaches or coastline around Phillip Island and a lot of that is ocean facing. So, they are very dangerous beaches, and we would really encourage people to do their homework first, look up on the Surf Lifesaving Victoria and go to the beaches that are patrolled and swim between those flags.

“It's you know, an incident like this just such impacts everybody, and especially, you know, the family and friends, but also the people, the first responders and those beachgoers who tried to save these people yesterday and you know, it's our heartfelt thanks to them for you know, taking action when they did.

“We know that there was a multi-agency operation of all the responding agencies coming together, but you know, those people that are there at that moment, those people just having a good day, and then this tragedy unfolds in front of them. It's, you know, it's just such a sad incident.

“And it probably could have been preventable if the people had been swimming at the patrolled beaches, either side of Forrest Caves, and Forrest Caves is very dangerous area, and the signage is quite clear about that.”

Cr Le Serve stressed the importance of finding out which beaches are patrolled and when, before you go.

“You can go on the website, and they’ll tell you which beaches are patrolled and what dates and times they are patrolled. And so that's really important, people come to this area as tourists, with their family and friends, to have a good day out and we just want to be able to make sure they will get home safely.”

Go to https://beachsafe.org.au/ and find the map of Victoria’s coastline listing the patrolled beaches, click on the flags for the patrolled times that day, but it’s better to download the Beachsafe app from the app store on your smartphone.

Either way, though, the information isn’t easy to find and it’s far from clear.

Official statement from the Mayor

The Bass Coast Shire Council issued an official statement from the Mayor Cr Clare Le Serve on Thursday morning:

Our community is deeply saddened and affected by the drownings in our region. Whilst we live in a beautiful region surrounded by beaches; this is sadly a tragic reminder of how dangerous the ocean can be.

We extend our deepest condolences to the families and friends of the victims. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the remaining victim in hospital.

We extend our thoughts and sincerest thanks to the first responders and other beachgoers who tried to save these victims in a major multi-agency operation.

As always, we encourage all beach users to assess the environment and take precautions to prevent tragedy by swimming on patrolled beaches, checking signs and swimming between the flags.

If you are unsure about conditions on a beach; do not swim there. Please only swim on patrolled beaches where there are lifeguards.

We want everyone who comes to enjoy our beaches to go home safely.