Peggys Cove safety upgrades comfort to Jamie Quattrocchi's mother

Loved ones of a man swept away by a wave at Peggys Cove gathered Friday to advocate for stronger safety awareness. 

On the one year anniversary of Jamie Quattrocchi's death, his mother Caroline Quattrocchi told CBC News she wants to prevent other families from losing loved ones at "such a beautiful spot."

"I want to make sure that people are aware that Jamie came here unaware of the dangers. He did not knowingly put himself at risk," she told CBC News. 

"He stood on a pink rock watching the waves and photographing the waves ... before a rogue wave came and took him to the ocean."

His body has not been found.

Death sparked change

The death of the young man from Smiths Falls, Ont., has sparked safety changes at the iconic lighthouse look off. 

The site now has new signs, a video warning message at the information centre and new panels explaining the ocean's strength. The provincial government also launched a social media safety campaign.

• Peggys Cove adds more measures to keep visitors safe

"The objective here really is to provide a balance between public safety and public access," Nova Scotia Business Minister Mark Furey said Friday.

Unpredictable ocean

Quattrocchi said visitors, often not from the East Coast, need to know that more than the black rocks are slippery. 

"People need to be made aware of the conditions of the ocean and the unpredictableness of the ocean," she said.

More than half a million people visit Peggys Cove outside Halifax each year, and other times, rescuers have been called about people falling into the water.

Even Friday, some visitors took risks. One man slipped on a rock, his companion catching his arm in time. 

• Peggys Cove disaster averted after man falls in the water

'Hard being here'

Brittany Smith was Jamie Quattrocchi's girlfriend, and was visiting Peggy's Cove with him when the wave took him. 

"It's hard being here, but being this is the last place I was with Jamie. I feel closer to him," she said. 

Smith said "anything is better than nothing being done" to improve awareness of the risks.

Empathy and compassion needed

His family and friends have dealt with online backlash to their efforts to make the tourist destination safer, but that hasn't prevented their work.

"The safety crisis at Peggy's Cove is probably an easier fix than the character crisis that exists in our society," Quattrocchi said. 

"When we look at people saying it's common sense to stay away from the ocean, you know, some would say that empathy and compassion are common sense."