'Nobody wants to see a kid lost': Flatrock resident says too many drownings in Big River

A long-time Flatrock resident says Tuesday's drowning death of a 16-year-old is all too familiar. 

• Flatrock river a popular — but dangerous — swimming spot, says mayor
• 16-year-old boy dead following Flatrock drowning

"Last night, I heard a number of sirens going and I seen the fire truck going out the main road and I knew right off the bat, I said, 'there's a life lost,'" says David McCarthy, who has been living in the community for 40 years. 

"There have been too many lives lost in this river, but it's impossible to bar it off … you've got the East Coast Trail going through it. You just hope this is the last [death], but we know it's not going to be."

McCarthy estimates there have been six or seven deaths and near-deaths at the swimming hole in Big River. He said there are too many people to count going through there on a hot summer day. 

"The main road is always blocked with cars. Even the police had to come down and give out tickets, because there was that many cars parked," he said.

McCarthy said he hopes getting the word out about the dangers of the swimming spot will help prevent further deaths. 

"I'm hoping this is the last one to drown here," he said.

"Nobody wants to see a kid lost."

'Oh my God, this happened again'

In 1995, musician Fred Gamberg died at the age of 23 while swimming with friends in Flatrock. For Gamberg's cousin, Tuesday's drowning death hit close to home.

David Keegan said he had two thoughts when he heard the news.

"The first was that, 'Oh my God, this happened again' and the second is that entire night of July 9 when Fred was missing ... through to the morning of July 10 when the police came to my aunt and uncle's house ... and told us that they had found his body," he said.

"All that just flashed back in a second."

Keegan and Gamberg's friends and family mounted a plaque near the swimming hole to warn others of its dangers. 

Keegan said while it is a known spot for dangerous undertows, clearly plaques aren't enough to deter people.

"Alert people to the dangers and redirect them to somewhere else that is refreshing, but has far less risk of dying," he said. 

"For the Town of Flatrock, it's time to get a risk management company in there. Get somebody in there who knows how to assess these scenarios and look at the problem and figure out what can be done, so that we're not five and 10 years from now talking about somebody else who has died in this place where we know people die," Keegan said.