It’s Australia’s own version of the sirens of Greek mythology.
But while Babinda Boulders has its own mythology courtesy of the local Yidindji people, there is nothing mythical about the 21 deaths at the far north Queensland site.
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Authorities responsible for the site south of Cairns continue to grapple with how to make it as safe as possible. Three of the deaths have come since 2020 after signage and fencing were put in place.
Babinda Boulders’ “no-go zone” includes a section where most of the deaths have occurred. The section is made up of connected areas known as Devil’s Pool, The Chute and The Washing Machine.
“People tend to venture past that point and that’s when it gets really dangerous,” Jamie Satani, chair of the Wanyurr-Majay Aboriginal Corporation, told 7NEWS.com.au.
Cairns councillor Brett Moller says people who fall into those waters will generally be in a “recovery, not a rescue”.
Satani concedes the sites are “inviting” but his people know not to go there.
“It’s a story place. You don’t go venturing into the story place, because it’s a legend and we respect that,” he said.
“It has cultural significance. People have got to learn to respect it.
“We respect it because it’s the way we’ve grown up – to understand to not go to those story places.”
The story he references is that of Oolana, a young girl whose spirit is believed to lure young men to their death.
As the legend goes, she died by suicide in Devil’s Pool having been separated from her forbidden lover. Her spirit is said to pull men into the water, believing they are her lover.
After the three most recent deaths – Brisbane father Shanon Hoffman in October 2021, Edmonton resident Chloe Bailey, 19, two months later and Cairns local Madison Tam, 18, in April 2020 – the Cairns Regional Council commissioned a safety review.
The report has now been handed down, finding there is a “significant problem” with young people (aged 18-34) “intentionally entering” the no-go zone “despite warnings”.
It has recommended improvements to signage, visitor engagement and education as ways to prevent further tragedies.
“Deaths that occur at The Boulders are from drowning in a notorious section of dangerous water from above the Devil’s Pool to below The Washing Machine,” the report states.
“The Chute is located between the Devil’s Pool and The Washing Machine and is the most dangerous location accounting for over half of recorded deaths.”
The Chute, according to the report, is so dangerous because it presents as a “small stream running through a narrow rock formation”.
Hidden below the surface is an approximately 8m deep crevice, while the volume of water combined with aeration “causes a force and pressure that both holds you down and makes it impossible for someone to swim up … regardless of whether a person has a life jacket or is an extremely strong and competent swimmer.”
“The danger here is significant and the potential for death once in the Chute is extremely high,” the report says.
“What is not understood by the general public is that there are several significant and dangerous forces present that can result in entrapment and drowning.”
The Cairns Regional Council has approved the safety recommendations in the report, with a plan to be developed to implement them.
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