POLICE have called off the search for a 41-year-old Chinese national after he was swept off rocks at the treacherous Punchbowl Coastal Reserve on Good Friday.
After recalling the police airwing at lunchtime on Monday, after four days of aerial surveillance, authorities declared the man “missing at sea”.
Police will prepare a report for the Coroner following the death of the missing man’s wife, a 37-year-old Chinese national from Pakenham.
The married couple, who share a child, were on working visas from China, and visiting the Phillip Island area with a group of seven people.
Emergency services were called to a beach off Punch Bowl Road about 8.30am on Friday, April 18 after reports two women and a man had been washed off rocks and were in the water.
Reportedly, the trio weren’t wearing lifejackets despite being present at a designated high-risk rock fishing location, in an unfortunate anomaly which mandates the use of compliant lifejackets by those actively fishing only.
One of the women managed to make her way back to shore but the other woman and her husband were unable to the same.
A search of the water was conducted with the Police Air Wing locating an unresponsive woman in the water. She was brought back to shore but could not be revived.
The woman who did make it back to shore was transferred to the Wonthaggi hospital but has since been discharged.
Police initiated a major search operation during the day on Friday, with three helicopters involved including police, Ambulance Victoria and the Westpac Lifesaver Rescue Helicopter Service. Other emergency services were also engaged including the SES, jet skis and volunteers from the Woolamai Beach SLSC, the Victoria Police dive team, part of its Search and Rescue Squad (SAR) and Fisheries officers.
The search continued on Saturday, Sunday and Monday before being officially called off around lunchtime on Monday.
Speaking to the Herald Sun on Sunday, Wonthaggi Acting Inspector Jason Hullick said it was unlikely the missing man would be found alive and the response had moved to a recovery phase.
“You never want to give up hope but the operation is probably now transitioning into a recovery phase,” said Acting Inspector Hullick.
“But unfortunately at this stage there are still no sightings. We have got his last-known description so we are also looking for particular items, clothing and footwear, things like that.”
He said authorities had done some modelling on currents and tides but weren’t totally relying it for the search based on past experience.
The death at San Remo contributed to the worst spate of coastal drownings at Easter in history with seven people dead and two missing across New South Wales and Victoria.
Lifesavers say the combination of hot weather, high coastal swells and increased beach activity has contributed to the tragic record.
While the message at the entrance to the George Bass Walk, at the end of Punch Bowl Road, is clear, “life jackets required to keep you safe” in multiple languages, the sing goes on to say “you must wear a lifejacket when rock fishing at this location”.
There has also been little or no general publicity given to the continuation of the lifejacket mandate at all rock platforms along the 40-kilometre stretch of coastline between Point Nepean and West Head near Flinders and existing zones at Pyramid Rocks on Phillip Island, Artillery Rocks (west of Lorne), Sheoak Falls (south of Lorne) and Cape Bridgewater (near the blowholes car park.
High-risk zones at Punchbowl Rocks and Potters Hill Road, near San Remo were also extended to include all rock platforms between Bore Beach and Kilcunda.
Despite Friday’s tragic incident, rock fishing at Punch Bowl Rocks continued throughout the busy Easter weekend with some fishermen wearing lifejackets while other fishermen and onlookers on the rock shelf were clearly not.
Punch Bowl Rocks has been the scene of regular drownings over the years.
