A spear fisherman who died after being rescued unconscious from a prominent Sydney beach has been hailed as a “gentleman.”
On Thursday afternoon, 29-year-old Louis Touma was diving with five people at Bondi Beach when he failed to surface for air.
His buddies hauled him onto the rocks and administered CPR until lifeguards brought him to shore on a jetski.
Mr. Touma was sent to St. Vincent’s Hospital but could not be rescued.
Since then, tributes have flooded in for the 29-year-old.
“I had the honor of knowing this gentlemen. He was as modest as they come. His life was taken far too short. I extend my sympathies to his family. “R.I.P. Louis,” one person wrote.
Another observed, “The world seems a little darker without Louis in it.”
“My heart is shattered,” said a third.
Five of his crewmates were transported to shore by medical helicopter and treated for shock.
Inspector Giles Buchanan of the NSW Ambulance Service stated, “This was an extremely distressing situation for this man’s pals, and we praise their fast response in attempting to assist their buddy.”
The circumstances surrounding the death are being investigated.