Two teenagers die at Wappa Falls on Sunshine Coast after attempted rescue from waterfall

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Two teenagers have died at popular Wappa Falls on the Sunshine Coast. A 17-year-old girl was swimming in the area when she was swept downstream and over the waterfall, while a boy died trying to save her. Josh Dye reports.

Transcript

00:00It was a Sunday afternoon adventure that turned into a horrible tragedy.

00:07Two 17-year-olds had been spending the day together here at Whopper Falls, relaxing in

00:12the calmer waters upstream.

00:14At about 2.30pm, the girl was swept down by the rapids and swept over the falls.

00:20When she failed to resurface, her friend jumped in to try and look for her.

00:25When he also didn't come up, a major search and rescue operation began.

00:29There was a significant presence of emergency services, with police divers leading the search.

00:34Police say the girl's body was found about 3.30pm, and the search continued into the

00:39night.

00:40The boy's body was discovered and retrieved about 7.30pm.

00:44Whopper Falls is a very popular spot for swimming most of the year, but SEQ Water says the dam

00:50upstream from here was more than 102% full and spilling over the spillway.

00:56The area had received about 40mm of rain on Saturday night.

01:00The falls have seen several fatalities over the years, and authorities are urging people

01:05to take care around the waterhole this summer.

01:08Police will prepare a report for the coroner.

Category

Transcript

Be the first to comment

Recommended