How a deadly confluence of factors led to a 'terrible and traumatic' Easter weekend …
“Terrible and traumatic,” is how the Surf Life Saving New South Wales chief, Steven Pearce, summed up what has been declared the deadliest Easter long weekend on record, well before it was even over. Seven people across NSW and Victoria were confirmed to have drowned by the morning of Easter Monday, and while the fatal […]
“Terrible and traumatic,” is how the Surf Life Saving New South Wales chief, Steven Pearce, summed up what has been declared the deadliest Easter long weekend on record, well before it was even over.
Seven people across NSW and Victoria were confirmed to have drowned by the morning of Easter Monday, and while the fatal heavy seas had returned to largely normal levels, crews were still searching for two people missing since Good Friday.
The tragedies occurred at different beaches across the east coast of Australia, and while most involved alarmingly large waves sweeping swimmers or fishers off rocks, their varying circumstances were the result of a deadly confluence of factors.
Authorities have blamed what they call a perfect storm for beach fatalities: a low-pressure system generating hazardous surf; unseasonably warm and sunny weather; and risky behaviour when much of the nation was enjoying a long weekend.
Dean Narramore, a senior meteorologist at the Bureau of Meteorology, said the writing was on the wall early on Friday.
“The main driver was a very deep and intense low-pressure system west of New Zealand, that combined with an upper level low,” he explained.
That generated strong winds, which drove the large swells. “The energy moved westwards,” Narramore said, with some swells refracted to eastern Victoria.
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At the same time, a high-pressure system over eastern Australia brought warm northerly winds, with temperatures 5-10C above average.
“There was plenty of sunshine, and all of that combined with the Easter long weekend meant a lot of people were heading out to the beach,” Narramore said.
By mid-morning, images began swirling online of violent waves at some of NSW’s most famous beaches, with surging seas crashing on to roads and into shopfronts. Wave heights exceeded five metres.
In Sydney, with temperatures reaching the mid-20s, even beaches within the city’s harbour, which are traditionally calm and protected from coastal swells, were closed.
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The closures did not stop everyone. Surfers were seen riding waves at the usually waveless Balmoral and Nielsen Park beaches.
At the coastal beach of Coogee, swimmers and surfers defied closures.
At Manly’s Queenscliff beach, footage circulated of swimmers gripping to handlebars before being swept from its ocean pool.
In Newcastle, ferocious waves reached well past the beach, with wheelie bins seen dragged into the water.
Within hours, details of the first drownings were announced by authorities.
A 58-year-old man had been washed off a breakwall at Wollongong harbour early on Friday as he walked to a fishing spot. Family members jumped in but failed to save him.
Later, at Middle Head Point on Sydney’s north shore, a man was washed off rocks and drowned.
By the late afternoon, a young man was “extricated from the water face down” at Eden, on the far south coast of NSW, after being washed off rocks.
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In Victoria, three Chinese nationals at San Remo beach near Phillip Island were swept into the sea. One woman was rescued, but another was pulled from the water unconscious and could not be revived. Her 41-year-old husband could not be located.
“Every drowning is a tragedy, and this is an absolutely tragic start to the Easter long weekend,” Pearce said on Friday night, as search teams looked for a swimmer who went missing from Sydney’s Little Bay beach, last seen struggling in the swell in the mid-afternoon.
Despite Pearce’s warnings, things would only get worse. While wave heights eased slightly on Saturday, to between two and four metres, conditions remained hazardous and many beaches were closed.
More deaths on the coast
Two people rock fishing at Tathra, on the NSW south coast, were swept into the ocean. One returned conscious and breathing. The other was later found dead.
On Sunday morning, another two rock fishers braved conditions, this time at Wattamolla, just south of Sydney. They were swept off rocks, with the Westpac helicopter called in to save them. They were both retrieved, with one pronounced dead at the scene.
Later that day, a nine-year-old boy became trapped between rocks at a beach on the NSW mid north coast. Distraught witnesses told the Daily Telegraph how the parents of the boy, trapped from the chest, were unable to free him. They held his hand and spoke to him, but as tides rose, he ultimately drowned.
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Meanwhile, more than 150 rescues were made by volunteer and professional lifesavers across NSW, with an alarming number of near misses. Rescue helicopters had performed 30 missions by Monday morning.
By Monday afternoon, once swells had returned to near normal levels, Victorian authorities called off the search for the missing 41-year-old Chinese national.
It brought the death toll from the long weekend to eight, as searches continued for the swimmer missing off Sydney’s Little Bay beach.
Devastating but predictable
Pearce said the outcome was devastating for volunteer surf lifesavers, but predictable.
“There’s no other description I would have to say for such a religious weekend this has been absolutely horrific,” he said.
“[It’s] just the culmination of hot temperatures, a long weekend, hundreds of thousands of people going to the coastline and an enormous swell.”
Every fatality that surf lifesavers responded to in NSW related to someone being washed off a rock.
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With the long weekend over, Pearce was wary of the coming Anzac Day long weekend, despite rain predicted.
“Our volunteer lifesavers and our lifeguards have risked their lives multitudes of times.”
He urged swimmers to only enter the water at patrolled beaches.
“If there is no red and yellow flags flying, there will be no one there … that can possibly save you.”
Millions will receive their high school and college diplomas across the United States this graduation season. WTOP asked students at American University for graduation gift giving advice. This page contains a video which is being blocked by your ad blocker.In order to view the video you must disable your ad blocker. What does the Class […]
Millions will receive their high school and college diplomas across the United States this graduation season. WTOP asked students at American University for graduation gift giving advice.
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What does the Class of 2025 want for graduation?
Millions will receive their high school and college diplomas across the United States this graduation season.
As we get the graduation announcements, a lot of us ask ourselves: What gift do we give or how much money should we put in the card?
Over $6 billion was spent on graduations last year in the U.S., according to the National Retail Federation.
The most popular gift was cash, followed by cards, gift cards, apparel and electronics.
WTOP asked students at American University for graduation gift giving advice.
Air fryers, cash, computers, headphones and exotic cars were all mentioned as possible choices.
Recent AU graduate Jacob Botelho said he received a $25 Wawa gift card.
“I’m glad to have gotten anything in the first place,” the Boston native said with a laugh.
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By Lisa S. Icenogle CASPER, Wyo. — A girls volleyball camp will take place at Casper College in the “Swede” Erickson Thunderbird Gymnasium, scheduled for June 9-11. The camp will feature three sessions under the direction of Angel Sharman, women’s head volleyball coach, and assistant coach Kelly Wiedemann. The first, from 10 a.m. to noon, […]
CASPER, Wyo. — A girls volleyball camp will take place at Casper College in the “Swede” Erickson Thunderbird Gymnasium, scheduled for June 9-11.
The camp will feature three sessions under the direction of Angel Sharman, women’s head volleyball coach, and assistant coach Kelly Wiedemann. The first, from 10 a.m. to noon, will be for third and fourth graders, followed by a camp for fifth and sixth graders from 1-3 p.m., and finally one for seventh through 10th graders from 3-5 p.m. Check-in is 30 minutes before each camp begins.
“Kelly and I are committed to giving all campers an enjoyable time at Casper College while teaching each one the skills and team aspect of the sport of volleyball,” said Sharman.
The camp fee is $80 per person, and each participant will receive a camp T-shirt. Walk-ins will not be accepted for a session that is full, so early registration is encouraged.
To register or for more information, people can contact athletics administrative assistant Robin Bisiar at 307-268-3000 or robin.bisiar@caspercollege.edu, or go here.
Blackfoot volleyball player Lilian Harper signs to become a Lady Monster
BLACKFOOT – Blackfoot’s Lilian Harper signed this week to play volleyball at Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher, Arizona. Harper was a 5A District 6 All-Conference honorable mention selection at outside/right side hitter. She led the Broncos with a 0.214 hitting percentage and was among team leaders in kills per set (2.7), blocks (56), and kills […]
BLACKFOOT – Blackfoot’s Lilian Harper signed this week to play volleyball at Eastern Arizona College in Thatcher, Arizona.
Harper was a 5A District 6 All-Conference honorable mention selection at outside/right side hitter.
She led the Broncos with a 0.214 hitting percentage and was among team leaders in kills per set (2.7), blocks (56), and kills (273).
The Eastern Arizona Lady Monsters advanced to the NJCAA Division I National Tournament last season and finished 23-12. They won the Region I Championship and the Rocky Mountain B District Championship to advance to the national tournament.
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Volleyball Graduate Assistant in Pittsburg, KS for Pittsburg State University
Pittsburg State University is an accredited, comprehensive, state-supported institution in southeastern Kansas, enrolling approximately 7,200 students annually. The institution has Colleges in the fields of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, and Technology. For more information see: http://www.pittstate.edu . Pittsburg has a population of approximately 19,000 residents and is located in southeast Kansas, about thirty miles […]
Pittsburg State University is an accredited, comprehensive, state-supported institution in southeastern Kansas, enrolling approximately 7,200 students annually. The institution has Colleges in the fields of Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, and Technology. For more information see: http://www.pittstate.edu . Pittsburg has a population of approximately 19,000 residents and is located in southeast Kansas, about thirty miles from Joplin, Missouri, which has a metropolitan area population of about 60,000 residents. Kansas City is located 120 miles north; Tulsa, Oklahoma is 125 miles southwest; Wichita is 160 miles west; and Springfield, Missouri is 95 miles east. For more information see: http://www.pittks.org .
UCLA Athletics Again Faces Hard Choices — Will History Repeat?
UCLA Athletics is once again at a pivotal crossroads Already burdened with a $219.5 million cumulative deficit over the past six fiscal years, and facing the looming financial obligations from the House v. NCAA settlement — which will require approximately $22 million annually in direct athlete compensation — the UCLA athletics department must now navigate […]
UCLA Athletics is once again at a pivotal crossroads
Already burdened with a $219.5 million cumulative deficit over the past six fiscal years, and facing the looming financial obligations from the House v. NCAA settlement — which will require approximately $22 million annually in direct athlete compensation — the UCLA athletics department must now navigate a fragile future for its non-revenue sports, including women’s swimming and diving and water polo.
History Echoes: UCLA Cut Men’s Swimming After a National Title
This moment evokes a painful chapter from UCLA’s past. Despite winning the 1982 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving championship and producing one of the fastest swimmers in the world, Robin Leamy, who set NCAA records in the 50-yard freestyle and won USA relay gold medals at the 1984 Olympics, UCLA famously cut its men’s swimming program in 1994.
Budget pressures and the need to comply with Title IX gender equity standards were cited. Yet the decision shocked the swimming world: how could one of the sport’s top programs — home to 22 Olympians — simply disappear?
Read the original LA Times coverage here.
“It didn’t matter that we had world records, Olympic medals, or NCAA titles,” one former swimmer recalled. “We were still cut because of the numbers.”
Today’s Success — and Today’s Risks
Fast forward to today, and the parallels are unsettling.
UCLA’s women’s water polo team is just a year removed from a perfect season by capturing the 2024 NCAA title. The women’s swimming and diving teams continue to produce NCAA qualifiers and Olympic hopefuls.
But success in the pool does not guarantee security outside of it.
Swimming World has reported on the financial challenges now facing collegiate aquatic sports:
Starting in the 2025–26 season, NCAA swimming teams will be capped at 30 athletes per gender, with some conferences proposing even stricter limits. Cuts and roster reductions have already begun nationwide, particularly for non-revenue sports like swimming and diving.
Big Ten Move Brings Hope — But Also Pressure
UCLA’s move to the Big Ten Conference is expected to provide a financial boost, with an estimated $75 million annually in new media rights revenue.
But this influx must cover soaring travel costs, new athlete compensation models, and the university’s existing debts. Athletic Director Martin Jarmond remains optimistic about sustaining Olympic sports — but history shows success alone doesn’t always save programs when budgets tighten.
The ghosts of 1994 are hovering again over Westwood. The question now is not whether UCLA can win championships — its aquatic programs already are. It’s whether that will be enough to preserve them in an era where spreadsheets, not scoreboards, often have the final say.
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PRINCETON, N.J. — The Columbia Outdoor Track & Field team returns to action this weekend at the Princeton Elite Meet in New Jersey. This is the final opportunity for student-athletes to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Prelims in two weeks. The competition will begin on Saturday at 11 […]
PRINCETON, N.J. — The Columbia Outdoor Track & Field team returns to action this weekend at the Princeton Elite Meet in New Jersey. This is the final opportunity for student-athletes to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Prelims in two weeks.
The competition will begin on Saturday at 11 a.m. at Weaver Stadium with the women’s javelin.
MEET INFO
For everything you need to know about the Princeton Elite Invitational, visit the event page on Princeton’s website, HERE.
Live results will also be available, HERE.
LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Lions participated in the Outdoor Ivy League Heptagonal Championships.
Obiora Okeke made headlines, capturing the Shot Put Ivy League Championship with a historic toss.
In the finals on Sunday afternoon, Okeke launched a shot 20.17m, which set a new meet record as well as a program record to secure the Ivy League title. After also placing fourth in the discus with a mark of 52.21m and seventh in the hammer, Okeke was named the Most Outstanding Performer – Field of the Outdoor Championships.
Elsewhere, the Lions earned 14 medals including four silver and three bronze.
After Joshua Adams won the Lions’ first silver medal on Saturday in the long jump, Rory Clare claimed the team’s first silver on Sunday in the 1500m, clocking in at 4:25.64, just over a second off of first place.
Haydn Brotschi also took home a silver medal, taking second in the 400m with a time of 46.80, just under two tenths of a second away from gold.
The final silver medal came from the men’s 4×800 relay, consisting of Ben Bergey, Justin Gottlieb, Matt Gatune, and Jacob Van Orden. The team finished with a time of 7:23.90 to claim the medal.
The women’s 4×800 relay took home a bronze medal, as the squad of Isabella Shertzer, Clare, Grace Carr, and Lucy Henkel finished with a new program record time of 8:32.46.
The men’s and women’s 4×100 relays also each earned a bronze medal.
Full results from the Ivy League Indoor Heps can be found HERE.
ON DECK:
With the regular season wrapped up, attention will turn towards NCAAs, beginning with the Outdoor Prelims. For qualified student-athletes, the competition will begin on Wednesday, May 28 at 3 p.m. in Jacksonville, Florida.
Columbia’s schedule for the rest of the 2024-25 outdoor season can be found HERE.
Stay up to date on all things Columbia track & field by following the Lions on Twitter (@CULionsXCTF), Instagram (@culionsxctf) and on Facebook (@ColumbiaAthletics).
