A 27 years old Indian national has drowned at Lake Bellfield, while he was on a day trip with his four friends.
The victim identified as Anudeep Varri, was a B Tech graduate from Vizag in Vishakhapatnam, who went for higher studies to Australia.
Anudeep’s friends told us that he, along with his four friends, had planned a trip to Lake Bellfield on Wednesday.
Three including Anudeep went for a swim, while one of his friends was shooting a video. He could not know the depth of the lake which was partly frozen. He was trapped in the frozen water and drowned
Anudeep was a research student at Deakin University in Melbourne.
HALLS GAP Sergeant Scott Olsen said that the victim was swimming at the Bellfield picnic area, marginally outside the designated swimming area.
“He got into trouble some distance from shore and couldn’t be dragged in by his friends,” he said.
Sergeant Olsen said police were conducting an unrelated search operation nearby at Jimmy Creek campground.
“We all tore down the road when we got the call,” he said.
“We stripped down and jumped into the water to conduct a line search of the area where the man was last seen.”
Sergeant Olsen said the man was under the water for 25 minutes and was submerged when police arrived.
He was located in two metres of water and pulled onto shore where the police commenced CPR for 15 to 20 minutes before paramedics arrived.
“They performed CPR for another 15 minutes until they declared he couldn’t be resuscitated.”
POLICE will prepare a report for the Melbourne Coroner’s court and the next of kin in India will be contacted.
Police said the area could be dangerous for swimmers.
There’s a lot of safety messages down there, It’s very cold and difficult to swim and gets deep fairly quickly and can get very, very cold.
“People need to be wary. They were just marginally outside the designated swimming area. We don’t encourage swimming in that area.”
Anudeep’s friends in Melbourne are raising funds to send his body back to his family in India.