Fisherman Feared For His Life

[mrmoshe]

Fisherman feared for his life

Father of four Sadiq Daalag loves rock fishing, but has vowed never to pick up a rod again.

He can't even bear to gaze out his living room window at Lake Illawarra. It reminds him too much of those seas.

"Water - yuck. No more fishing," the Iraqi migrant said.

Yesterday the Lake Heights resident sat on his couch, cuddled up to his wife, happily recounting what the family considered a small miracle.

"I don't believe my husband is alive," Aghdas Zahrouni said. "I thank my god."

After being swept off rocks at Port Kembla and spending 90 minutes in rough seas on Wednesday night, Mr Daalag thought he was dead.

His wife of two years certainly did.

And his daughters aged 13 and 18, and sons aged 21 and 23, faced the prospect of losing their dad only four years after their mother was killed in the Iraq War.

But then a Port Kembla surf club boat appeared and Mr Daalag was scooped out of the ocean into the safety of the rubber duckie.

Mr Daalag, 41, and Ms Zahrouni, 34, were fishing on a rock platform below the sewerage works near Red Point just after 7.30pm.

The spot is notorious, and last April a man fishing on his own was swept to his death. Despite his wife's constant pleas, Mr Daalag insisted on regularly returning to fish at the spot, south of Hill 60.

The Iranian migrant chose to accompany her husband on fishing expeditions to look out for him.

On another trip she had grabbed hold of Mr Daalag when a wave threatened to take him away. But on Wednesday she only just managed to save herself.

Ms Zahrouni broke her fall by clutching the rock shelf, which left her with a grazed leg and an injured shoulder. "When I saw him I started to scream. I thought maybe he was not alive," she said.

The couple speak very limited English, but Mr Daalag's daughters have become fluent since their arrival in Australia two years ago and translated most of this Mercury interview.

Mr Daalag said he fell about 6m into the water, and his wife advised him to swim out away from the rocky shore.

"I was thinking I was going to die," he said.

"I was worried about sharks. I can swim only on my back. I became so tired. I drunk lots of salt water."

Lake Illawarra Police said they were called at 7.40pm. Surf-lifesavers were called after 8pm and had brought Mr Daalag to Port Kembla Beach by 9pm.

The family said they were extremely thankful to all who came to their aid.

Nawras Majeed, 13, told how she was woken by a phone call to her older sister Noor, 18, telling them their father was missing at sea.

"Every time he went there he promised he wouldn't go there again or even go fishing," his daughter said.

Aghdas Zahrouni, nursing an injured shoulder, hugs husband Sadiq Daalag at their Lake Heights home yesterday. Mr Daalag was rescued off Port Kembla Beach on Wednesday night after being swept into the sea.

[tomahawk1999]

Sound's like one lucky dude!

Gotta wonder about his choice of shirt though considering what he's been through!

[choad]

Sound's like one lucky dude!

Gotta wonder about his choice of shirt though considering what he's been through!

ps: is it just my dirty mind or is that bloke copping a handful?

[mottyman]

ps: is it just my dirty mind or is that bloke copping a handful?

I didn't read the story and went strait to the pic, first thing that crossed my mind...

[tonyt]

broken shoulder you dirty minded boys arm inside the shirt

[bazle brush]

tell him to get back up on that big stalion mate that horse and flog it harder and say is that

all you got he'll get the hang of it when i almost drowned in a surfing acident 4ft swell going to a 10ft swell in seconds i hade a shoulder injury to hard to paddle on swell smashed me big time after that my mates told me (come on) to get back on the horse ride it out but