Two drown off NT coast

Two men drowned when a group of seven tried to cross a channel between Dorcherty Island and the Wadeye coast in the Northern Territory.

Two men who drowned off the Northern Territory coast had been trying to cross a flooded channel after their vehicle was bogged, police say.

A group of seven men from the Aboriginal community of Wadeye, about 400km southwest of Darwin, got into trouble after attempting to cross a channel flooded by the incoming tide between Dorcherty Island and the remote community's coast.

One member of the group made it to shore and raised the alarm at about 7.30pm (CST), and police found four others clinging to a forty-four gallon drum in the water near Wadeye soon after.

"They're fine, fatigued and very, very shaken up due to what they've gone through, but no injuries sustained," a police spokeswoman told AAP.

The bodies of the two remaining members of the group were discovered on a beach on the island early on Monday morning.

A report will be prepared for the coroner.


Share

1 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world