Search icon

News

07th Jan 2022

Irish dad-of-three dies trying to save son who fell into rapids in Australia

Alan Loughnane

Tragic news.

An Irishman has died whilst trying to save his son after he slipped and fell into waterfall rapids in Australia.

Local police said the 49-year-old father-of-three Cassan Cowman jumped in after his son at Wappa Falls in the Sunshine Coast Hinterland in Queensland.

Cassan’s son was retrieved from the water by members of the public, but Cassan himself did not emerge from the water.

His body was later retrieved from the water, police said.

The incident happened on 2 January.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise funds for his three children Ormond (11), Ella (9), and Torin (7) to fund their “ongoing education”.

The fundraiser describes Cassan as “charismatic” and “Irish to a fault”. He enjoyed a whiskey but at the end of the day, he “simply loved his family”.

“He was a devoted family man through and through, working day and night to provide for his family,” the post continued.

At the time of writing, AU$13,310 has been raised for Cassan’s family.