A favourite past-time for many Australians has been revealed as also one of the deadliest with rock fishing accounting for 201 deaths across Australia in the past 20 years.

Ten per cent or 22 of those deaths occurred in a single Local Government Area, Randwick, in Sydney’s eastern suburbs.

The Mayor of Randwick Councillor Philipa Veitch today launched a new communications campaign highlighting the death rate with graphic red skulls and implored people to ‘make a safe choice’.

“This campaign is deliberately shocking to try and cut through and make people pay attention,” Mayor Veitch said.

“It’s an absolute tragedy that people are still dying from this sport and this is having a devasting impact on families and communities and emergency service workers.

“Rock fishing is not like other types of fishing. It’s dangerous and should not be attempted by those who cannot swim, don’t have the proper safety equipment, training or knowledge,” Mayor Veitch said.

The campaign includes outdoor advertising across the Randwick area, cinema advertising as well as a multicultural marketing campaign targeting men across Sydney from a Non-English speaking background.

The ‘make a safe choice’ campaign encourages people to:

• Learn to swim
• Wear a lifejacket
• Wear non-slip footwear
• Check conditions
• Never fish alone
• Go home if conditions are too rough

“For more experienced fishers, making a safe choice might mean picking a different rock ledge on rough days or being more cautious,” Mayor Veitch said. “But for newcomers to the sport or those who can’t swim, a safe choice might mean fishing off a beach or from a jetty in the harbour instead.”

This campaign is the latest in a series of measures undertaken by local and state authorities to address rock fishing fatalities.

In 2016 the Randwick LGA became the first area to trial compulsory lifejackets for rock fishers – a move that is now permanent and in place in most coastal areas across NSW.

Randwick Council also installed large ‘shock’ signs at access points to well-known rock ledges highlighting the number of fatalities at each location.

Council has also backed an idea to require retailers of fishing bait and tackle to display safety information about rock fishing at the point of sale.

The idea dubbed ‘Hasti’s law’ was proposed by Ms Hasti Heidarzadeh Sadrabadi who lost her husband Payam and 10-year-old son Mahan in a rock fishing accident in January 2022 at Little Bay (in the Randwick LGA).

“Like many newcomers to the sport, Hasti and her family purchased their fishing equipment from a large department store and had little knowledge of the dangers or safety requirements for rock fishing,” Mayor Veitch said.

“Had there been a sign or information about the dangers of the activity they were about to try for the first time, they may have made a safer choice.”

Randwick Council has been liaising with Senator Murray Watt, the Federal Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry about incorporating the idea into the National Fisheries Plan.

Media enquiries

Joshua Hay 0402 351 459 joshua.hay@randwick.nsw.gov.au