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In January this year, six people drowned or nearly drowned in the area covered by Rockhampton, Gladstone and Emerald.
That was the most of any month in the past year, during which there were 19 such occasions altogether.
So starting on March 3 and until the end of the year, Bluefit Swimming will run free swimming lessons for infants up to four months old.
Rockhampton Aquatic swimming instructor Harmony Starchild’s own daughter drowned, spurring her to become a specialist infant swimming teacher about eight years ago.
She said the earlier people learned to swim, the better.
“I lost a little one in a drowning, so I know how important it is that I teach them correctly,” Ms Starchild said.
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Subscriber only A Mackay man whose daughter and niece drowned in the Gooseponds says he will spend the rest of his life fighting to ensure their deaths will not be in vain. Cousins Annamarie Lange, 3, and Ashley Grech, 2, drowned in the freshwater stream 30 years ago on March 14, 1990 after Annamarie s dad Andreas Lange reported them missing from the nearby family home. Months after the tragedy, wooden cleats were placed around the Gooseponds in North Mackay at the recommendation of Mackay Coroner Tom Bradshaw. The Coroner s inquest was told the girls might not have been able to get out of the water because the concrete banks were too steep and too slippery.
Sydney news: Premier Gladys Berejiklian convenes meeting on COVID-19 restrictions, more than 50 emergency rescues on Australia Day
Posted
TueTuesday 26
updated
SunSunday 31
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian last week flagged an easing of restrictions for after Australia Day.
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NSW crisis cabinet to convene on restrictions
NSW residents will learn today whether COVID-19 restrictions will be relaxed after the state recorded more than a week of zero locally acquired cases.
Last week, Premier Gladys Berejiklian signalled an easing of restrictions after Australia Day and will lead a crisis cabinet meeting today to discuss restrictions which were introduced after the northern beaches outbreak in December.
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Subscriber only It is not like the movies, with flailing arms splashing the water and gurgled cries for help. It is silent, quick and a leading killer of children and young people. Drowning is the leading cause of unintentional death among young people with the greatest toll among children under the age of five, new data has found. James Cook University Associate Professor Richard Franklin said 10 years of data from Australia, New Zealand and Canada found a drop in drowning deaths among people under 20, but a large increase in drownings for adolescent females and First Nations peoples. Many more children are impacted by non-fatal drowning, some experiencing long-term health impacts, said Dr Franklin.