Dramatic details have been revealed of the desperate efforts to save a newlywed who drowned on her honeymoon at a Sydney beauty spot.
The 32-year-old woman, believed to be from South Korea, was pulled from the water at Shelly Beach in Manly, on Sydney‘s northern beaches, just before 1pm on Wednesday.
Her devastated new husband was on the beach at her side as bystanders tried to save her life before emergency services arrived.
Beachgoers have now revealed how the alarm was raised when a teenage boy tried to rouse the woman after she was seen floating face down and motionless.
When she failed to respond, a massive rescue operation immediately swung into action and she was pulled from the water with locals trying to revive her on the beach.
‘It just looked like someone snorkelling,’ said one local mother who was with friends on the secluded beach at the time.
‘One of the boys in our group was in the water close to where she was and two men were shouting at him to check on her as they must have noticed her floating.
Dramatic details have been revealed of the desperate efforts to save a foreign national newlywed who drowned on her honeymoon at a Sydney beauty spot
![It is understood the woman was a newlywed enjoying her honeymoon when she died (scene pictured)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/18/04/80115511-12976385-It_is_understood_the_woman_was_a_newlywed_enjoying_her_honeymoon-a-28_1705550805577.jpg)
It is understood the woman was a newlywed enjoying her honeymoon when she died (scene pictured)
‘He tapped her, but she was unresponsive – at which point, bystanders rushed in to pull her out.’
Another mother on the beach revealed how her friend’s 13-year-old son made the grim discovery.
‘There were two men on the rocks pointing at her – I don’t know how they saw something was wrong, she just looked like the other snorkellers who were nearby,’ said the local mum.
‘My friend’s son swam over and tapped her but she didn’t respond, then he lifted her arm and it just flopped back into the water.
‘At that point he tried to get under the water to try to lift her up and the two men jumped into the sea to help him.
‘They turned her over and she just flopped. One of the boys said he thought he saw blood and water in her facemask. They then dragged her out of the water.’
They tried unsuccessfully to give her life-saving CPR to resuscitate her as her distraught newlywed husband watched on and wailed in heartbroken grief.
‘It was very upsetting to hear the husband in such distress,’ the beachgoer told Daily Mail Australia.
‘There were people trying to console the poor husband when his wife was being worked on.
‘We are all feeling for that poor man and the pain and heartbreak he must be experiencing right now.
‘They were working on her for a long time. The first responders were amazing.’
The second mother said blood and foam came out of the victim’s mouth as the rescuers attempted to do chest compressions on her.
‘It was quite traumatic,’ she said. ‘I had four children with me and took them away at that point.
‘I tried to contact the other snorkellers to see if they were related to her but they were not. I think she could have been lying in the water for quite some time.
‘She might have banged her head on the rocks while snorkelling and then drifted away which could explain the blood.
‘The children were asking me afterwards how someone could die while snorkelling when you have breathing equipment and I can’t explain it any other way, unless she had some other kind of medical episode.’
Beachgoers said there was initial confusion about what was happening but everyone quickly worked together to try to save the young woman.
‘I heard a lot of shouting and then turned and saw them pulling someone out and starting CPR,’ said the first mother.
‘There was lots of calling out for what was needed and people rushing off to do whatever they could to help.’
![The woman, 32, drowned at Shelly Beach in Manly on Wednesday afternoon (pictured) after she was spotted floating facedown and motionless in the sea](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/18/04/80115503-12976385-The_woman_32_drowned_at_Shelly_Beach_in_Manly_on_Wednesday_after-a-29_1705550805761.jpg)
The woman, 32, drowned at Shelly Beach in Manly on Wednesday afternoon (pictured) after she was spotted floating facedown and motionless in the sea
![The woman, 32, was pulled from the water at Shelly Beach in Manly (pictured)](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/01/18/04/80115537-12976385-The_woman_32_was_pulled_from_the_water_at_Shelly_Beach_in_Manly_-a-30_1705550806973.jpg)
The woman, 32, was pulled from the water at Shelly Beach in Manly (pictured)
She said the boy who first reached out to the dead woman had also been traumatised by the tragedy.
‘We all are,’ she added. ‘It was a very tragic and sad day.’
The second mother added: ‘I couldn’t sleep last night. Seeing her like that kept flashing into my mind. I’ve never seen a dead person before. It was awful.
‘Her poor husband – when we were leaving, we just heard some man screaming and crying and wailing and realised that that must have been her husband.’
A fleet of police cars and ambulances raced to scene and attempted to treat the woman, but she could not be revived.
Local man, Troy Constable, told Facebook users the woman was a Korean national.
‘Married three days ago,’ he posted. ‘I was down at the beach and saw the aftermath.’
At least 10 police cars were spotted at the scene, along with firefighters from Dee Why Station.
A rescue helicopter tasked from Bankstown was also called and landed directly on the sand.
The beach was closed and onlookers were asked to vacate the scene.
Locals are now demanding the local council man the beach with full-time lifesavers.
‘I don’t know why there’s no lifeguards on that beach in summer,’ said one mother.
‘It’s always a busy beach and there’s no one’s watching anybody around them.
‘Everyone’s on their phones and no-one would think that a snorkeller face down in the water would be something to worry about.
‘And especially as that beach is a magnet for tourists. It needs life guards.’
It is the 58th drowning death in Australia since the start of summer, according to Royal Life Saving Australia, up from 46 at the same time last year.
The woman has not been formally identified. A report will be prepared for the coroner.