Two women who died after being swept off rocks at a beach in Sydney’s south have been identified.
Best friends Marwa Hashim and Niersha “Shani” Sulaiman were walking along the water’s edge during a picnic at Yena Gap in Kurnell when a large, freak wave knocked them into the water about 4.30pm on Monday.
The two women were pulled from the water unconscious and paramedics attempted CPR, but both died at the scene.
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A third woman, Hashim’s sister, was also swept from the rock but was plucked from the water by two members of the group.
NSW Police Marine Area Command chief Joe McNulty said a group of three women and two men had been picnicking in the national park on Botany Bay.
“The people were walking very close to the water’s edge and with a low tide the rock platforms are very exposed, very slippery, full of seaweed,” he said on Tuesday.
The conditions would give a large wave a “significant extra amount of force” to knock anyone on the platform from their feet and drag them into the water, McNulty said, adding rough sea conditions and the heavy winter clothing worn by the women made the rescue operation more difficult.
A friend of Sulaiman, Asifa Kader, said more family and friends were on the way to Kurnell to join the women for a picnic before the tragedy unfolded. She said it was a tragic day for the local community.
Kader said Hashim’s sister, who is currently in hospital being treated for hypothermia, is “inconsolable” about her sister’s death.
“She just wakes up in between and cries … I’m giving all my love to her now,” she said.
“You have no idea how beautiful they are. They were so lively,” Kader said about her two friends who died.
“They were the cheerleaders for the whole girl gang … it’s a big loss for us … I don’t think there are enough people like them.”
Both of the women were mothers born in India.
It was the second drowning incident at Kurnell in less than a fortnight.
Two Nepalese fishermen were swept off rocks on Cape Solander Drive on May 28 in an area declared a high-risk rock-fishing location where anglers must wear life jackets.
The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service said it would work with police and review signage at Yena Gap, noting existing signage warned of dangerous waves, slippery rocks and the need for people venturing onto the rocks to wear a life jacket.
“NPWS will review the signage in place at Yena Gap to see if anything else can be done to ensure people are aware of the risks in this area,” it said.
“NPWS understands people want to visit remote locations and aims to ensure visitors are safe when visiting national parks and coastal areas.”
– with AAP