Two men drown trying to swim across Fitzroy River weeks after flooding destroyed the bridge

Two men have drowned in the past three weeks trying to swim across the Fitzroy River after the bridge was cut by flooding in January, severing the central Kimberley town in two. James Hester had the heart-breaking task of pulling the lifeless body of his 20 year-old son, who can’t be named for cultural reasons, from the river about 24 hours after he disappeared beneath the surging waters while trying to swim from the west to the east bank on Sunday afternoon. It came two weeks after the body of a 40-year-old Fitzroy Crossing man, who also can’t be named for cultural reasons, was pulled from the water after he tried to follow his nephew and swim across the river. Shire of Derby-West Kimberley president Geoff Haerewa said the tragic events and the fact people were trying to swim across the river was, “definitely a concern,” “Even with all the media we have out there saying not to swim people are still taking the risk,” he said. Fitzroy Crossing has been cut in two since a one-in-100-year flood swept through the region, buckling and washing away part of the bridge. It not only cut the town in two it also destroyed the only sealed road connecting the west and east Kimberley. Since then, the only way to cross from one side of the town to the other is via a helicopter service operated by Department of Fire and Emergency Services twice a day which can take two or three people. Alternatively, people can wade through very deep mud at the boat ramp to launch a vessel to get to the other side. The 20-year-old went missing around 3.30pm on Sunday when he entered the river, which was experiencing minor flood levels, near the Fitzroy River Lodge. A woman who was with the man ran to the lodge to raise the alarm while the 20-year-old’s brother-in-law Nat Ryder swam into the heavy current to save him. At the Lodge, general manager Kandula Herat and two staff took a boat to the river and rescued Mr Ryder who was pulled face down from the water, but they could not find the 20-year-old. They looked for the young man along with family, friends, police and emergency services until sunset, and then the search recommenced the following morning. The search involved numerous men from the communities of 8 Mile, Bayulu and Muludja. His body was eventually found by the community on Monday afternoon by dragging a netting system through the water which was traditionally used to catch freshwater crocodiles. Shire of Derby-West Kimberley councillor Geoff Davis said generally people know not to swim in the river when it was in full flood. “But on average the river takes a person a year, sometimes there are multiple deaths,” he said. Chairman of indigenous organisation Leedal, Patrick Green, said Main Roads needed to reconnect the bridge with a footbridge so people can once again travel between the east and west of the town. He said Main Roads has put up barriers to stop people walking along the intact section of the bridge. “The bridge is two-thirds or three-quarters across the river and there’s only a small section that needs a footbridge. I know the bridge is bowed and may be dangerous to cars but people if they had a walkway they could walk across,” he said. He said the helicopter service, although helpful, was expensive and could only take two or three people at a time. “I guess with all the expenses why can’t we make a walkway across the missing part when two-thirds of the bridge is already done.” Mr Haerewa said he would not comment on the idea of a footbridge because he was not an engineer. “We can only give so much information out there and if people ignore it for some reason or another they should just heed the warnings. “I have all confidence in the State and Federal governments to have the bridge built as soon as is practicably possible - I don’t know if there is any other options out there.” Main Roads is attempting to install a floating barge system to get people and cars across the river but works have been delayed by heavy rain. There has also been delays due to ongoing discussion with traditional owners over where they can build barge infrastructure on the western bank without disturbing culturally significant sites. Main Roads hope to have a low-level temporary bridge finished by the dry season while the replacement bridge will take up to two years to complete. A spokesperson said it was working “as fast as we can to provide a ferry operation across the Fitzroy River” but had been hampered by high river levels. “The Government is not pursuing a pedestrian walkway across the river as it would be a significant undertaking which, with the current river conditions wouldn’t be able to be delivered before the end of the wet season,” they said. “An access road and landing area has been constructed on the eastern side of the river and works are underway on the access road and landing area on the western side. “Local residents have already been using this ramp to cross the river in private boats, however due to the current flood flow, this was deemed unsafe and access the ramp was closed.”