Fisherman washed off rocks in Albany
Fears are held for a Woodvale teenager who was swept off rocks at a popular Albany fishing spot this morning.
A search is under way for the boy, who went missing just after 8am after he had been fishing off rocks at Salmon Holes.
The boy is understood to be a poor swimmer and to have been holidaying in the coastal city for the weekend.
Three search and rescue boats and a fixed-wing aircraft are searching the area.
A police dive team and helicopter are expected to arrive at the scene later today.
Albany Police officer-in-charge Mark Fairclough said the search was a "full-blown marine search rescue".
"At this point we have lost sight of the boy," Sgt Fairclough said.
Local fisherman John Hinds, who witnessed the incident and fishes at the spot most days, said bystanders threw buoys to the teenager from the rocks.
"The boy got too close to the waterline and slipped on the rocks," he said.
"After he fell in he bobbed around for about three minutes and then he disappeared."
Dale
Posts: 7930
Date Joined: 13/09/05
Dont like his chances now, I
Dont like his chances now, I hope it's no one from here.
Dale
"Just because you are a Character, Doesn't mean you have Character."
Mr Wolf
carnarvonite
Posts: 8701
Date Joined: 24/07/07
Not good
Having fished there many times before I don't like his chances.
southcity104
Posts: 1659
Date Joined: 27/01/09
very sad.
At the company im working for atm we have lost a chopper pilot and a techy in albany off the rocks. They just went for a look and vanished. It would be scary to know the figures of how many people those cliffs have claimed?
anyways i hope they teenager made it to shore.
"Its a life style job"
grantarctic1
Posts: 2546
Date Joined: 03/03/11
News said the gap
7 news headline said it was near the Gap. I havent been there many times but i didnt think the Gap was near the Salmon holes.
Any way its very sad and hope he made it to shore.
Faulkner Family
Posts: 18304
Date Joined: 11/03/08
not the safest place for the
not the safest place for the inexperienced.slim chance of survival .not good news at all
RUSS and SANDY. A family that fishes together stays together
Goodz
Posts: 2332
Date Joined: 20/07/09
Sad news! Knew it would be
Sad news! Knew it would be the salmon holes before reading the report. How does this keep happening?!
Shorty
Posts: 1549
Date Joined: 10/05/08
In Albany they provide free
In Albany they provide free PFD type ones for people to borrow if they are doing any rock fishing ,they availble at the local tackle shops etc
This was started to stop any further rock fishing deaths a while ago in Albany,,
Jack Dawson
Posts: 81
Date Joined: 02/04/09
Every year or so a tragedy
Every year or so a tragedy like this happens, condolences to family and friends.
I don't like his chances, howling ENE winds are far from ideal conditions to fish Salmon holes from the beach, let alone the rocks.
Jack
Busted Arse
Posts: 253
Date Joined: 02/07/10
Not good. Condolences to the
Not good. Condolences to the family. Has anchor points been installed around popular albany fishing spots on the stones? I remember it was being done around yallingup and talks around esperence. Mind you the fisher needs to harness themselves in order for anchors to be effective. PFD's should be a minimum requirement Ideally people should tie themselves off as well.
harro
Posts: 1959
Date Joined: 07/02/08
prayers
prayers and thoughts for his family, so sad ,
:::: Bass Hunter ::::
Dale
Posts: 7930
Date Joined: 13/09/05
A body has been recovered
A body has been recovered from the ocean a short while ago. Believed to be the missing fisherman and an afghan refugee. Condolences to the family and friends.
Dale
"Just because you are a Character, Doesn't mean you have Character."
Mr Wolf
roberta
Posts: 2773
Date Joined: 08/07/08
Taken to
early RIP
Ginger Tablets Rock
Aussie Boofhead
Posts: 88
Date Joined: 23/03/09
i lived in albany for many
however those exact rocks have taken so many lives its bloody stupid people continue to fish there,
they are SALMON for god sake.
you get the same salmon from the beach than you do those rocks, more chance of landing them from the beach too
people will never learn, i spent years fishing the ledges around albany and denmark, ive seen kingwaves and they are f**king scary, but we tie ourselves off and PFD's are a MUST.
Aussie Boofhead
Posts: 88
Date Joined: 23/03/09
it NEVER ceases to amaze me
it NEVER ceases to amaze me how many people fish off the rocks in that photo with no safety gear.
There would be I reckon 6 signs in either the car park, steps or on the beach which state "Lives have been lost even on calm days" all over the place.
But what is it worth really. They even fish off them rocks at night with no torches. Have seen this while I have been safely fishing off the beach.
Aussie Boofhead
Posts: 88
Date Joined: 23/03/09
they have a PFD device there
they have a PFD device there but dickheads vandal it
Aussie Boofhead
Posts: 88
Date Joined: 23/03/09
THE body of a teenage
THE body of a teenage fisherman has been found off Albany's notorious Salmon Holes, a day after he was swept off rocks.
The body of the 18-year-old was found about 10.30am.
Albany Police confirmed that the body had been formally identified as the missing teenager.
The search resumed this morning for the young man, who was swept into the ocean about 9am yesterday.
The teenager was fishing with his brother at Frenchman Bay, near Salmon Holes Road.
He was seen in the water for about 20 minutes, but was unable to grasp a flotation device thrown towards him.
It’s understood the young man was visiting Albany for the weekend and is a Woodvale resident.
Yesterday's search involved three boats, a police helicopter and police divers.
Police media spokesman Sergeant Graham Clifford said numerous boats, SES volunteers on the shore Pol Air and police divers were searching for the 18-year-old this morning.
Meanwhite, during the operation to locate the teenager, a married couple were rescued from freezing waters off the Albany coast after their boat sank about 1km from shore.
The pair from nearby Kendenup near Mt Barker were in a five-meter fibreglass cruiser in King George Sound about 7am this morning.
The boat began to sink due to mechanical problems when they put in a mayday call to local rescue authorities.
The Pol Air helicopter flying over head during the operation to locate the missing teenager spotted the pair in the water near the upturned boat after which point a rescue boat was dispatched to that location.
The man and the woman were both taken to hospital with mild hypothermia.
The boat was towed back to shore but sustained significant damage.
Sergeant Clifford said the pair had been lucky to have been spotted by the helicopter.
"The pilot (of the helicopter) mentioned to me that the people in the boat were pretty lucky because they had just got off the ground to go for the search (for the teenager)," Sgt Clifford said.
"King George Sound...is a pretty big bit of ocean, not going to say they wouldn’t have been found without Pol Air down there but it certainly made it a lot easier."
Nauti Buoy
Posts: 595
Date Joined: 20/04/09
Common sense
RIP to the young bloke- very sad!
It all comes down to a bit of common sense and being prepared for the conditions. Doesn't matter if people say don't fish there because it is dangerous- because they still will. It comes down to the individual and/or parents involved to use good judgement prior to fishing in a spot like that.
If the Quobba coast was situated closer to a major regional centre (ie Albany) there would have been a lot more rescues and/or deaths up there, but due to it's relative isolation and the fact that the people that fish there go prepared makes it a lot safer.
Joodles
Posts: 362
Date Joined: 19/11/10
silent sentrys
Yeah it's pretty sad that these devices put at local risk spots don't work because of vandals. It makes ya wonder....
carnarvonite
Posts: 8701
Date Joined: 24/07/07
Quobba
We , Carnarvon sea rescue get two or three calls a year where people have been washed off the rocks up Quobba way and its usually in weather that our present boat would take a minimum of 2 hours to reach the Blowholes without having to travel any further but this will change in the very near future with our new 10 metre Naiad due to be delivered.
Most of the rescues are performed from shore because of the time lapse for us to arrive, the last one involved two young men and their father who were rescued by one of the Rio Tinto tugs that luckly turned up just as they were washed in, sadly the father passed away during the rescue. Almost all are in bad weather or large swells that anyone with half a brain would know its dangerous and no fish is worth a human life, but as it comes up in our debriefings after these events , we have to deal with all of the pupolation not just the ones with commonsense, sadly though it is.
For anyone planning a trip up there please take your time to read all the plaques at nearly every fishing spot rfor the names of anglers who have drowned, there are many plaques and many names on most of them, they are not there for entertainment of tourists but as a warning of how easy it could be for your name to be added to the already long list
Sadly our comrades in Albany have to go through the procedures of pulling someone 's body from the water many hours after he has drowned, take it from me, its not something you would wish on your worst enemy, thankfully we have councillors on call if needed and most times the are.
PattyT
Posts: 1025
Date Joined: 15/08/10
Such a damm shame, no fish is
Such a damm shame, no fish is worth that. I'm always wary to the point of not enjoying my fishing when I'm on the stones.. so I try to avoid them. So sad.
Dan L
Posts: 113
Date Joined: 26/01/11
Just think,if those vandals
Just think,if those vandals didn't vandalise there is a chance that he could still be here.
Shorty
Posts: 1549
Date Joined: 10/05/08
It said bystanders threw
It said bystanders threw bouys to the teenager, i think the bouys are the silent sentrys down there.
Once again Albany business's provide free PFD's for loan for folks going rock fishing down there,,why aren't people wearing them ?
MattMiller
Posts: 4171
Date Joined: 15/06/09
Yeah your right Shorty
But when they first set the system up the cage containing the bouys had an EPIRB system connected to it. When someone opened the lid on the cage it would trigger the EPIRB. Consequently vandals assumed that there 'fun' was more important than the lives that could be saved with this device. After numerous false alarms and damage sustained to the device it was decided to remove said EPIRB. Dissappointing.
It's always sad when someone is lost to the ocean, especially when it's preventable.
JasFishing
Posts: 90
Date Joined: 02/02/11
RIP
RIP mate.........another life lost around the rocks :(
Gone Fishing
tailor marc
Posts: 2979
Date Joined: 27/09/06
R.I.P mate. I did an article
R.I.P mate.
I did an article on rock fishing saftey and salmon holes was a main point. PFD's should be compulsory
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