The search for a missing 11-year-old boy who was swept out to sea while on a fishing trip with his dad and brothers has entered its third day.
Emergency services were called to The Entrance Channel, on NSW‘s Central Coast, at about 5.15pm on Sunday following reports a child had been swept into the ocean.
Police were told a 43-year-old man was crossing the channel with his four boys – aged 11, nine, seven and three – when the eldest child was pulled into the water.
Bystanders rushed to the father’s aid and looked after the other three boys while he desperately tried to reach his son.
However, he was unsuccessful and the 11-year-old boy was swept away by the strong tide.
Witnesses recalled watching the father help his youngest sons cross the channel while the eldest son walked behind them.
It is understood the boy was walking with a camp chair on his back as the family crossed the notorious channel, The Daily Telegraph reported.
It is not known whether the missing boy could swim.
The 43-year-old father was crossing The Entrance Channel with his four boys – aged 11, nine, seven and three – when the eldest child was swept into the water
The distraught father is seen embracing his youngest son shortly after his eldest was swept out to sea on Sunday afternoon
‘We heard yelling out and looked over and saw a man rushing through the water,’ Sarah Bailey told 7 News.
‘And then we noticed a little boy in the waves with his arm up. He was really struggling.’
Another witness, Gary Phillis, said the boy ‘was gone in a couple of seconds’ and that his father was ‘hysterical’.
Two bystanders helped look after the the man’s younger children while he frantically tried to rescue his son.
The distraught father was later pictured sitting on the sand hugging his youngest son tight while being consoled.
It’s understood the mother had not gone on the fishing trip but travelled to the Central Coast with family and friends on Monday as the search resumed.
The family said they ‘would like to thank the community, residents and locals’ for the support and assistance during ‘this extremely difficult time’.
Police divers found the boy’s chair, towel and esky before the search was suspended just after 4pm on Monday.
Tuggerah Lakes Inspector David Piddington told media on Monday that NSW Police has a specialist family liaison officer helping the family.
‘The family are very distraught and as I said they are being very well supported by our family liaison officer, chaplains and we will assist them as much as we can,’ he said.
In a heartbreaking twist, the boy was swept out to sea about less than 20 minutes after lifesaving volunteers had finished their patrols for the day.
The Entrance Channel is one of the most dangerous locations on the region due to the strong currents during changing tides.
The extensive search and rescue operation (pictured) resumed on Tuesday
The father tried desperately to reach his son who was pulled by the strong tide but was unsuccessful (pictured, men thought to be relatives or friends watch over the stretch of water where the boy was swept out to sea)
The treacherous channel, known as the ‘black spot’ of the Central Coast, connects Tuggerah Lakes to the ocean.
Many people cross the channel at low tide as a way to get back to The Entrance car park or to access North Entrance.
However, when the tide changes the strong currents pulling water out to sea become a tremendous force.
In 2016, two fishermen drowned in the The Entrance Channel after they fell into the water while fishing.
In 2012, 15-year-old boy Keon Sbrugnera also drowned after he was caught in a rip while swimming with friends.
In the same year, a strong current during an incoming tide pulled a Toyota HiLux ute into the middle of The Entrance Channel.
An excavator had to be called in to help remove the ute from the water.
The family of the 11-year-old boy are from an Arabic-speaking background, prompting calls for warnings in multiple languages for those unaware of the channel’s hidden dangers.
Signs warning beachgoers of the dangers are located in number of spots near the channel.
The signs, written in English, alert people to ‘beware – fast, changing currents and deep holes’.
The warning also states the area was a ‘known danger for fishing, night wading, swimming’ and urge people to visit the nearest The Entrance, which is a patrolled beach about 400m away.
Locals believe the warning signs are not enough to deter visitors and that three separate stairs and handrails that lead directly to the water actually entice people to the channel
The channel at The Entrance is a notorious danger spot as the shifting sands push strong currents out to sea (pictured)
Locals believe the signs are not enough to deter visitors and that three separate stairs and handrails actually entice people down into the water.
The Entrance Channel warning signs are also only written in English, which proves problematic for non-English speaking visitors.
Surf Life Saving Central Coast chief executive Michael Hyslop said the effectiveness of the signs would be considered.
Mr Hyslop added the signs were an ongoing issue for the club, particularly in warning people whose first language was not English.
‘Yeah look, there is signage up down there and all of those things will be part of the investigation as well ongoing,’ Mr Hyslop told The Daily Telegraph.
‘We obviously always have difficult times spreading our message, [but] like I said today, our focus is to find an 11-year-old boy who’s gone missing.’
