A 46-year-old man and a 17-year-old boy have tragically lost their lives after drowning while on holiday in Australia. The British tourists were caught by strong currents on Sunday and dragged out to sea while swimming at a beach in a renowned tourist spot at the southern extremity of the Great Barrier Reef.
The BBC has reported that the incident occurred at an unguarded beach in the town of Seventeen Seventy, named in commemoration of Captain James Cook's arrival in Australia in the year 1770. Despite being retrieved from the ocean by a police rescue helicopter, both individuals were pronounced dead at the scene. Additionally, an Australian man is reportedly fighting for his life after also being swept away; he was flown to a hospital with severe head injuries.
Australian authorities have confirmed that the deceased man and boy were UK nationals, though further details are yet to be disclosed. Darren Everard from Surf Life Saving Queensland spoke to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), stating: "We're not sure whether the third person jumped into the water trying to perform a rescue."
CapRescue, the emergency service that responded to the incident, posted on social media that "Sunday's mission was a difficult one," acknowledging that the two had passed away despite exhaustive rescue efforts. The injured Australian man is from Monto, a town approximately 100 miles inland from Seventeen Seventy.
There is only one beach patrolled by lifeguards within a 50-kilometre radius of Seventeen Seventy, according to the BBC. The authorities are not treating the deaths as suspicious, and police will now prepare a report for the coroner.
