A terrified beachgoer who witnessed a “near drowning” at an Aussie beach this week has shared the swimmer’s shocking confession as he gasped for air on the shore.
It has since prompted an urgent plea from coastal scientist Rob Brander, nicknamed Dr Rip, who told Yahoo News the decision could be the difference between life and death in a rip current.
The beachgoer in question was walking along an unpatrolled section of beach in NSW Northern Rivers region when she spotted out the corner of her eye “someone out in the surf with their hand up”. “They were getting smashed by the waves, and they were putting their hand up intermittently,” she explained.
She quickly realised the swimmer was in trouble, and without any kind of flotation device and with the closest lifeguards likely “two kilometres down the beach”, all she could do was call triple-0. Thankfully, the man managed to navigate out of the “big waves” and was able to find his way onto a sandbank and stand up.
While he was “down on all fours trying to get a breath”, he confessed to the woman who helped him to shore he had second-guessed whether he should ask for help while struggling in the water.
“[He was] very shaken up and he said to me, ‘It takes a lot for me to ask for help. I don’t want to be a burden to people. I really wasn’t sure if I was going to put my hand up or not’,” she recalled.
While saying it was a “crazy” thing to think, the beachgoer acknowledged she could relate to the mentality as it “applies to so many different areas of life”.
“I said to him, ‘You know, the discomfort of asking for help is much less of a burden to somebody that’s going to help you than coming across a dead body on the beach’,” she said solemnly.
It’s not ‘uncommon’ for swimmers to not ask for help, Dr Rip says
Rips remain one of the greatest and most common hazards on Aussie beaches, claiming 21 lives in the country every year on average. However, Brander, aka Dr Rip, told Yahoo News that rescued swimmers often admit they didn’t want to ask for help or who actually choose not to ask for any.
Rob Brander, aka Dr Rip, said requesting help can be the difference between life and death. Source: Getty/UNSW Sydney
“I work with lifeguards all the time, and we talk about these sorts of things, just how people do not call for help. And the reason for that could be a whole bunch of things. It could be embarrassment, could be shame,” he said.
It’s not uncommon for people not to call for help, and you absolutely, absolutely should because a drowning situation escalates so quicklyRob Brander, Dr Rip
In the latest National Drowning Report released by Surf Life Saving Australia, 323 people lost their lives to drowning between July 2023 and June 2024 and 35 per cent of these were rip-related.
What to do if you get caught in a rip?
There are three “vital” things you need to do if you catch yourself caught in a rip — one of which is to call or signal for help.
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Stay calm and do not panic
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Float on your back and let the rip carry you away — this will help you conserve energy.
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Call or signal for help
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