Bouquets have been laid at the site of a stone war memorial engraved with the words "Lest We Forget" after a three-year-old Sydney girl was crushed to death by the monument on the NSW mid-north coast.
The girl was playing with a group of children at a party at the Black Head Bowling Club at Hallidays Point on Saturday evening when another child climbed onto the sandstone monument, police said.
The rectangular memorial then toppled, crushing the three-year-old against the concrete footpath.
A woman who identified as the young girl's aunt thanked a man who performed CPR after the accident.
"On behalf of the family thank you for all you have done," she posted on Facebook.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
"I am the little girls Aunty and was there my partner, her uncle, shook your hand, your [sic] a champion."
Locals have been placing flowers at the base of the monument for the little girl, from Airds in Sydney's southwest, who had been attending a family gathering in the coastal town.
Emergency services were called to the club just before 7.30pm on Saturday and the girl was taken to Manning Base Hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival, police said.
A report will be prepared for the coroner and look into why the memorial toppled over.
"We can't speculate as to why it fell over ... it appears weight was an influencing factor," NSW Police Superintendent Peter Thurtell told the ABC on Monday.
