CANYONING 22 January 2005 - Fatality, Empress Canyon. Blue Mountains, NSW
Lucas Trihey
NSW
A 32 year old male canyoner, Matthew Donovan, died in swirling
floodwaters in the second last pool of Empress Falls Canyon. A severe
thunderstorm had just hit the surrounding area which dumped a lot of
rain and hail that caused all watercourses in the area to flood
rapidly. The man was with six others who were approaching the main
abseil above Empress Falls proper when the rising waters overtook the
group. The other people managed to reach the relative safety of the
abseil bolts (on the left side facing downstream). When Donovan tried
to follow he became trapped in a pool of swirling water. It seems
likely that he drowned after being held under water for some time. The
back wall of the second last pool before the falls overhangs steeply
and below water level it also slopes away steeply. In high water, and
because of the way water enters the pool it creates a nasty situation
where all surface water moves to the back of the pool and due to the
overhanging back wall it's impossible to push off to escape. There has
been at least one other near miss at this spot in recent years in high
water. At low or medium water levels the pool looks very innocuous. The
other canyoners survived the ordeal with some minor injuries. Donovan's
body was recovered by police divers on the 24th. A post mortem is to be
conducted.
LEVEL 4 REPORT.