Qld:Tourist drowns on Gold Coast

AAP General News (Australia)
12-23-2000
Qld:Tourist drowns on Gold Coast

By Dale Paget

GOLD COAST, Qld, Dec 23 AAP - A tourist drowned, unnoticed by fellow travellers, today
after being dropped off by a tour bus driver at an unpatrolled section of beach north
of Surfers Paradise.

The man, believed to be aged in his early 20s and of Indian descent, was among a group
of tourists dropped off at the beach on The Spit, near Sea World.

Gold Coast City chief lifeguard, Warren Young, said a lifeguard at the nearest flagged
area, more than 500 metres away, drove to the tour group to warn them to swim between
the flags about 3pm (AEST) today.

"When he drove down they came out," said Mr Young.

"Then they did a head count and said there's some one missing."

"They didn't even know this person was missing until the lifeguard went down there
to tell them to swim between the flags."

The body of the missing man was recovered a short time later.

Mr Young said he could not understand why the driver had chosen the area for a swim.

"I think it is disappointing that a tour bus company or a bus operator would pull up
in a bus with people, not knowing their skills in the ocean, and not search for a flagged
area," he said.

"To me this is probably one of the more preventable things."

It is the first drowning on the Gold Coast this summer.

AAP dp/mjm/de

KEYWORD: DROWNING

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