Sydney, Feb 1 (IANS): Grieving relations travelled from India on Thursday to bid remaining adieu to 4 of their members of the family who died final week on Phillip Island in one of many worst drowning tragedies within the Australian state of Victoria since 2005.

Siblings Jagjeet Shivam Anand, 23, and Suhani Anand, 20, together with Kriti Bedi, 20, and Reema Sondhi, 43, died after the tide turned on the unpatrolled Forrest Caves seashore in Newhaven.

The 4 victims had been cremated on Thursday after a service that mixed Sikh and Hindu rites and was attended by about 200 mourners, together with members of the family, The Sydney Morning Herald reported.

Remembering his late nephew, niece, sister, and sister-in-law, Ankur Chhabra stated his younger relations got here to Australia for a greater future, and “in a couple of seconds, we misplaced all people”.

He recalled Jagjeet as a “golden-hearted boy”, Suhani as “probably the most lovely lady”, Reema because the “bravest lady” and Kirti as “an animal lover”.

Whereas Jagjeet was a devoted aged care employee and sister Suhani was learning nursing, Kirti had arrived six months in the past from Punjab to review psychology.

She stayed with Jagjeet and Suhani in Clyde alongside Chhabra, the report stated.

Reema, a mom of two teenagers, was two weeks into her Australian vacation when the tragedy struck.

Emergency providers prior to now have warned towards swimming on the comparatively distant Forrest Caves seashore, which they are saying is a spot finest suited to surfers.

Chhabra informed The Herald that his household didn’t see the warnings of harmful waters at Forrest Caves, urging the authorities to enhance security signage.

“We now have misplaced 4 members of the family, we don’t need anybody else to lose their members of the family,” Chhabra stated.

Together with Chhabra, different household and mates thanked the emergency providers for making an attempt to save lots of their family members.

Additionally they praised the Indian Excessive Fee and native MP Cassandra Fernando for serving to the Indian members of the family enter the nation for Thursday’s service.

Off-duty lifesavers browsing close by had rushed to the drowning household’s support and pulled three folks from the water unresponsive on January 24 at round 3.30 p.m.

A rescue boat retrieved the fourth individual after the Cape Woolamai Surf Lifesaving Membership responded at about 3.40 p.m.

Three of the victims had been pronounced lifeless on the scene, whereas Suhani was airlifted to The Alfred Hospital in Melbourne in a essential situation the place she succumbed to her accidents.

The Indian Excessive Fee condoled the deaths as a “heartbreaking tragedy” and warranted all help to the household and mates of the deceased.

“All of us labored tirelessly to assist these folks,” Ambulance Victoria supervisor Paul James had informed the media after the tragedy.

Liam Krige, Life Saving Victoria’s common supervisor of operations, stated at a press convention that 19 folks have drowned in Victoria since December 1 — two greater than the identical interval final summer time.

“Behind every one in every of these drownings, there’s a household, there’s a brother, there is a sister, there is a mom, there is a daughter,” he stated.