Plea for safety fencing after two women lost to freak wave at Kurnell

Niersha (Shani) Haris, 38, from Minto, and Marwa Hashim, 39, from Hoxton Park, each had three children, ranging from toddlers to teenagers. They belonged to Sydney's Indian Malayalee community.

Their deaths came just two weeks after two Allawah men of Nepalese background died in similar circumstances while rock fishing in the same area.

A close friend of the women and their families is advocating for enhanced safety measures to prevent future incidents.

Dr Ahmed Shahir, a respected member of the Malayalee community and a senior physician at Auburn Hospital, is also seeking to express gratitude to a couple who played a pivotal role in rescuing a third woman.

The women, who were best friends, along with Shani's sister Roshna, visiting from India, were swept into the sea by a rogue wave around 4.30 pm on Monday June 3.

Roshna was pulled from the water with the assistance of bystanders using an angel ring, but tragically, Shani and Marwa did not resurface.

The women had been enjoying a picnic with their husbands Siraj and Harris and children on the hill at Yenna Gap, where they had set up a tent.

"The sea appeared calm and inviting, prompting the adults to venture down to the rocks," Dr Shahir said.

"The children remained in the tent under the care of Shani's eldest daughter, Zayan Harris (Minnu). They were unaware of the unfolding tragedy until the arrival of the police."

Dr Shahir said the group had been on the rocks for about 45 minutes without any apparent danger, while their husbands were nearby on the rock shelf.

Among others present were a rock fisherman and his family, who had not perceived the need for life jackets.

"Some locals might assume these were uninformed visitors who neglected precautions, but in fact, it was quite the opposite," Dr Shahir emphasised.

"Both Shani and Marwa were highly educated, proficient in English, and actively contributing members of our community and society."

"Marwa, a postgraduate engineer, served as a senior transport planner for Transport NSW, while Shani worked at Sydney Airport with DNATA. Shani was also a trained swimmer.

"Their husbands, Harris Bin Ummer, a senior building information modeling engineer, and Siraj Hameed, an experienced GP at Narellan, would never have exposed their families to risk knowingly.

"This must not be allowed to happen again, especially in a regulated national park with controlled access."

Dr Shahir urged authorities to engage engineers and safety experts to evaluate measures such as fencing and prominent warning signs detailing the history of fatalities on the rocks over the years.

He also asked ACM, publisher of this masthead, to publish a photo of those who assisted in rescuing Roshna, one of whom has been identified as Rabih Yassine.

Dr. Shahir said they would like to locate and thank the man who deployed the angel ring and the woman who assisted him.

Dr Shahir saiid, on behalf of the families, he would like to thank everyone else involved on the day, including the rescue team, emergency response team, the police, ambulance, St George hospital team and officers and the coroners as well the funeral team.

"The women were Australian citizens of Indian origin and active members of the Sydney Malayalee community. The community stood together and worked in tandem and were able to get many family members spread across the world including Canada, Dubai, Saudi Arabia, India and Philippines by working together and coordinating with all concerned officials and ministries."