Bondi Lifeguards Gather Personal Belongings To Give Back To Owners
Image: Dean Lewins/AAP Image
The lifeguards at Bondi Beach have been praised for their proactive actions during the Bondi terror attack, and by Monday morning had gathered all personal items left behind on the beach.
The Bondi lifeguards started collecting the many personal belongings left behind on the one kilometer stretch of beach, as a result of the deadly shooting on Sunday. According to news.com.au, the pile gathered included everything from towels, shoes, water bottles and bags, just to name a few.
Afterwards, the team then laid out the belongings so people could easily locate their stuff and pick them up, and brought more valuable items like mobile phones back to their station.
A local lifeguard said that the team of guards didn’t think their effort was a big deal, but rather thought that this was what anyone would do in their situation.
Since Sunday, most items have been picked up by their owners, as civilians along with PM Albanese and other prominent names have also laid thousands of flowers in memorial in front of the Bondi Pavillion.
While everyone fled the shooting, lifeguards sacrificed own safety to help other’s
In incredible pictures shared online, Bondi Rescue star Jackson Doolan was seen running barefoot towards the beach, as everyone else was fleeing, with a defibrillator kit in hand to help the ones in need.
A local resident named Alexandra Ching told The Guardian that she had gone out to the streets as she thought, like many others, that the shooting was initially fireworks. However, as she soon found out this was not the case, she heard someone come up behind her running in the direction of Bondi.
“I heard someone say ‘excuse me’, and as I turned I just saw this flash of blue,” she recounted.
“He was just flying past. It was just him running in the direction that everyone was trying to escape from, carrying that big kit and barefoot … He’s running at something that surely every fibre in your being, you know, would tell you to go in the other direction.
“Just no hesitation, but just fully pedal to the metal sprinting,” Ching said.
Another Bondi lifeguard identified as Rory Davey was also captured in astonishing footage, where he is seen diving into the water to save drowning bathers while the deadly shooting was still ongoing.
“The team ran out under fire to try and clear the children from the playground, whilst the gunmen were firing. They were able to get the children inside,” said Surf Lifesaving NSW chief executive Steven Pearce to the Sydney Morning Herald, and added that other lifesavers started trying to do CPR on the shot victims they had brought inside the Bondi Surf Bathers’ Life Saving Club.
“At one stage, there were four people shot inside the building.”
Pearce also said that a woman had gone into labour in the middle of the hectic minutes during the shooting, and that the lifeguards brought her inside their club to help her as well. The woman was later taken to the hospital before giving birth.
In a statement shared on their Instagram, the Bondi lifeguard team thanked everyone for the kind messages and support they have received following the tragic event on Sunday, but also stated that they are “still trying to comprehend what occurred”.
Help and support is available
- Bondi Victim Services helpline 1800 411 822
- Public Information & Enquiry Centre on 1800 227 228
- Supply information to police on 1800 333 000
- NSW Health Mental Health Line, available 24/7 on 1800 011 511
- For crisis support, call Lifeline on 13 11 14
