Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Australia. Photo: Getty.
A 35-year-old Irish man has drowned off a beach near the Great Barrier Reef in Australia.
The man died at the popular Whitehaven Beach on Whitsunday Island at around 11am on Wednesday, ahead of New Year’s celebrations getting under way.
Emergency services were called to the scene after the man was found unresponsive in the water, local news outlets reported.
A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs said it is aware of the incident and “stands ready to provide consular assistance”.
The man is among a number of people who have died in separate incidents off the Australian coast in recent days.
Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Islands, Australia. Photo: Getty.
News in 90 Seconds – January 1st 2026
A young woman died after being swept into the ocean from Maroubra Beach in Sydney in the early hours of yesterday.
Local police were told a 25-year-old woman was hit by a wave that knocked her into a tidal rock pool before further waves swept her out to sea. Her body was found at around 5am yesterday.
Separately, a 45-year-old woman died at Dunbogan Beach in New South Wales later yesterday after getting into difficulties in the water.
The woman died after being pulled from the water. She was treated by paramedics at the scene but could not be revived.
A number of other people were reported missing in separate incidents off the Australian coast, including a teenage boy who was on a dinghy that overturned near Sydney’s northern beaches on New Year’s Eve.
A man believed to have been on board the boat died at the scene near Palm Beach, while another man was hospitalised.
Just after 6am yesterday, a separate search began for a swimmer aged in his 20s who was believed to be missing in the water off the coast of Coogee Beach in Sydney.