Name: Drowning toll climbs as lifesavers urge beach safety
Uploaded: 2026-01-02T06:12:22.850Z
Duration: 1 min 48 s
Description: NSW lifesavers are pleading with beachgoers to stick to patrolled beaches as the death toll from a horror few days rises. Three people have now lost their lives, but the number could climb to five, with searches for two missing people still underway.

NSW lifesavers are pleading with beachgoers to stick to patrolled beaches as the death toll from a horror few days rises. Three people have now lost their lives, but the number could climb to five, with searches for two missing people still underway.

Coogee

Authorities in New South Wales are intensifying search efforts after several drownings and missing persons incidents along the coast since Christmas Day. Among those missing is Sushant Khadka, a Nepalese student last seen swimming at Koji Beach on New Year's Day, and a 14-year-old boy unaccounted for after a boat capsized at Palm Beach.

Emergency services report at least three confirmed deaths, including Melissa Austin, who was found at Dunbogan Beach. Over 110 rescues have been recorded since Christmas, prompting officials to stress the importance of swimming at patrolled beaches and learning from these preventable tragedies.

Drowning toll climbs as lifesavers urge beach safety

As the window for survival narrows, the search for a missing Koji Beach swimmer widens. From above, beyond the break and beneath the water. Sushant Khadka, a Nepalese student in his 20s, hasn't been seen since he went swimming with friends on New Year's Day. The clarity is poor but they're doing their best. So a huge amount of resources being thrown at this on day two of the search. Resources stretched to the limit across what's been a horror few days along the coast. Three lives lost, others still missing. Three, potentially five drownings in different locations under different circumstances. It's terrible. Authorities desperate for their message to get through. The safest place to swim this summer is where you see a lifeguard on the beach. If they can see you then they'll have the best possible chance of saving you if you do get in trouble this summer. A 14-year-old boy remains unaccounted for in Palm Beach. Nearly three days after his boat overturned, killing another man, that rescue mission scaled back. The rescuers will still be looking. Police are still calling it a search operation. Hairdresser and mother of two, Melissa Austin, pulled from Dunbogan Beach on the mid-north coast about 3pm yesterday. Her family says the 45-year-old arrived that morning for a week-long holiday with broken hearts sharing the news of her passing, asking for compassion during this painful time. It's the magnitude of this cluster of drownings that has our first responders so worried so early on into the summer months. New South Wales clocking 110 rescues and counting since Christmas Day. It is so important. Learn the lesson from these tragic circumstances because it's such a tragic loss of life. These were all preventable deaths. Olivia Blunden, 10 News.

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