A NSW Coroner has recommended a major safety overhaul of the state's stormwater inlets in the wake of the tragic drowning of Unanderra boy Ryan Teasdale two years ago.
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Ryan was bodyboarding with his brother at Riley Park after heavy rain on March 16, 2017 when he was swept into a submerged stormwater inlet and disappeared.
Family members carried out a frantic search before contacting emergency services, who launched a large-scale operation involving police and the SES.
Tragically, Ryan's lifeless body was found the following day in a creek bed behind the Unanderra Pool, almost a kilometre away from the park.
At an inquest into Ryan's death on Wednesday, Acting State Coroner Magistrate Teresa O'Sullivan called on the NSW Government to develop guidelines for the design of safer stormwater inlets and assess all current drains to minimise the risk of similar deaths occurring in the future.
"I accept...that Ryan's death highlights the significant risks that can arise from children coming into close proximity with an open stormwater inlet during heavy flows, whether deliberately without realising the risks involved or through inadvertence, as existed at Riley Park on March 16, 2017," Magistrate O'Sullivan said.
"Ryan, as were many other adults and children, was at the park engaging in an otherwise benign activity of sliding down the slope.
"The other children at the park, as well as those who attended on prior occasions during heavy rain periods, were also at risk because of the inlet opening."
Magistrate O'Sullivan noted that Wollongong City Council - "to its credit" - had installed a grated drain system at the inlet and was assessing others in the region to prevent a repeat of the tragedy.
She recommended that all local councils in NSW be given a copy of any guidelines that are drafted.
Meanwhile, Ryan's aunt, Karen Parsons, read a moving statement to the inquest in which she described her nephew as "caring, generous, kind and happy".
"He always had a smile on his face and loved nothing more than making people happy," she said.
"He was one of a kind...our very own little ray of sunshine."
She spoke about his love for collecting rocks, crystals and gems - the purple ones were his favourite - and the pain his family and friends continue to feel at his loss.
"We are still learning to live and move forward without our boy - this isn't an easy task," she said.
"There are not enough words to explain just how special Ryan was or how much he was and is loved and how much he is missed.
"No a day goes by that we don't think of Ryan, our cuddly little koala, our Ry Ry, the boy with the heart of gold."
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