Wentworth Falls landslips kill again

Tragically again, two more people have been killed by a landslip in the Jamison Valley just south of the village of Wentworth Falls in the Blue Mountains.

Yesterday, Monday 4th April 2022, a group of tourists (a family of five from Britain) embarked on an unguided day hike along the Wentworth Pass loop track.  They likely followed the UK-based website https://www.walkmyworld.com/ and its faraway  hiking advice entitled ‘Wentworth Pass: a waterfall lovers paradise‘.

So this means that they likely parked at the Wenthworth Falls Picnic Area Car Park else parked at Conservation Hut as guided by the UK website.

The Wentworth Pass track circuit is a very difficult Grade 4 so suitable only for advanced hikers.  Its disstance is between 5km and about 7km depending upon the hiking route  chosen and involves a 400m descent and climb out.  A fair time duration is in the order of of about 4 hours taking an easy pace, but not allowing for breaks.

The track route is very steep traversing down the 600m escarpment cliff-face using many ladders and involving some rock scrambles, so advanced fitness and hiking experience is strongly recommended.  A hiking guide with recent familiarity with the route is preferred as well.  This track is not well maintained by the Parks Service.

Monday was a nice sunny day and for once, not raining, however the Blue Mountains region has sustained considerable heavy and constant rainfall on and off for the past two years as part of the recurring La Niña climate pattern saturating the Australian east coast on and off pretty much since February 2020.

All the rain has saturated the ground and caused numerous landslips across the Blue Mountains and widespread flooding in riverine regions of eastern NSW.

Hiking tracks around the Blue Mountains are typically very muddy and slippery at present due to all the ongoing torrential rain of late.  Several areas around Wentworth Falls have been closed since March 11 due to flood damage including Charles Darwin Walk and National Pass track, amongst many other hiking tracks.  It is unlikely that the family had researched the route nor assessed the hiking risks, but rather just took off on a leisurely stroll into the remote wilds.  Map, compass, wet weather gear, first aid kit, PLB, trip notification to authorities, etc?  Likely not.

Just after lunch time on Sunday an emergency call was made by the 15 year old daughter of the family who reported that a landslip that had suddenly impacted her family along the Wentworth Pass track.

Police reported that on Sunday the father of the family aged 49, and his nine-year-old son were killed as a result.  The mother (50), and a second son (14) were critically injured and are in Westmead Hospital.  The 15-year-old daughter managed to hike back out to safety unharmed in a naturallly distressed state before being treated for shock.

Emergency crews returned to the scene this morning betweeen 8am and 10am to recover the bodies of the father and his youngest son.

The landslip on Wentworth Pass was just 350 metres from the National Pass track situated higher up the escarpment above where on Wednesday 29th November 2017 a 36-year-old National Parks contractor Dave Gliddon died from a rock fall while working on fixing the track.  Two of his co-workers also suffered serious crush injuries.  The National Pass has been closed every since due to the ‘ongoing rockfall risk’.  (SOURCE:  ‘Landslip at Wentworth Falls: Two dead, two critically injured’, 5th April 2022, by B.C Lewis, Blue Mountains Gazette)

Last month at around 5pm on Tuesday 1st March Blue Mountains Police Rescue were called to the same area to rescue a hiking couple stranded at the base of Wentworth Falls due to heavy rains causing Jamison Creek to rise and become dangerously uncrossable.

A man in his 60s and his daughter in her 30s had descended from the top of Wentworth Falls down Slack Stairs to the base of the waterfall during heavy rain in the late afternoon.  Jamison Creek subsequently rose so the water level became dangerous to cross on their return.

The two were treated for hypothermia, so were they were ill-prepared?

So the Parks Service excuse that this rock falll was a “freak accident” is a legal cop out.  the rock fall hazard was unresolved by thee Parks Service and was generally well known.

Since 7:03pm on Monday 4th April 2022, 7.03pm, the Parks Service reads  “Wentworth Falls and Valley of the Waters precincts are closed until further notice due to a rockfall. Please avoid this area.”

It would thus be unwise and negligent for Ultra-Trail Australia’s planned marathon to proceed in these conditions next month.  Laps of Pitt Park would be much safer.

We’ll see what eventuates.

It’s long overdue for the Parks Service as government custodian of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, to accept responsibilty for being proactive in its management of hiking track safety across the Blue Mountains region.  This includes engaging the expertise of a permament team of professional hydrogeologists with suitable experience and familiarity with the sandstone escarpment and groundwater systems particular to the Blue Mountains.

Blue Mountains tourism since November 2019 has continued to suffer neglect and poor management in multiple ways – abandoned bushfires, ignored landslips, multiple road closures, pandemic lockdowns, train cancellations from Sydney, and local council pebblecreting of village footpaths to deny pedestrian access to local shops.

Unforgivable!

“There are no words to adequately express the sadness and horror that our Blue Mountains community feels after the freak tragic bushwalking accident that happened in Wentworth Falls on Monday.  The loss this family has experienced is beyond measure.”

She praised the work of Mountains “skilled Emergency Services, in particular the Special Operations Paramedics and our Police Rescue Teams – the trauma and heartbreak they witness as first responders can never be underplayed”.

There would be “extensive inquiries into what happened and potentially a desire to lay blame.  Of course we need to take a long, hard look at the scope for and capabilities of the National Parks and Wildlife Service to maintain track safety (especially after COVID pandemics and catastrophic weather events such as fire and flood) given their ever-diminishing resources.   The agency has been shamefully stripped bare over the past decade. However for now, I believe we need to wrap ourselves around the family involved and offer whatever support we can during their time of utter devastation.”