🔗 Share this article While Swimmers Ran From Attack, Widely-Shared Photo Shows Lifeguard Sprinting ‘All Out’ In the Direction of the Scene. Alexandra Ching, a permanent inhabitant of Bondi, has always considered the famous coast as her back yard. On that fateful Sunday evening, she, like many neighbors, heard loud noises reverberating around the suburb. “Everyone did, but I reasoned it was daylight and no one could see them,” Ching recounts. Exiting her apartment, she witnessed people “streaming up Bondi Road”. The faces she saw told her trouble had occurred. While standing on the street, talking to a pair who had run up the slope in their swimwear, she noticed someone moving up at her rear. The person was a beach patrol officer, running at full speed in the direction of Bondi barefoot from the neighbouring Tamarama beach – a distance of 1.5km – while holding a life-saving kit. “I heard someone say ‘excuse me’, and turning my head I just saw this flash of blue,” she recounts. “He was zooming past. He was the only one moving in the opposite way that all the others was trying to escape from, while holding that sizeable pack and without footwear … He’s running towards something that certainly every fibre in your being would tell you to go in the reverse way. “Without a second thought, but just completely pedal to the metal racing.” An Iconic Image of Courage In the Wake of Chaos The image taken by Ching of the rescuer, now known to be Jackson Doolan, rapidly circulated as a prime example of acts of heroism in the wake of the tragic event. Andy Reid, another lifeguard, says that Doolan, referred to as “Jacko”, hurried from Tamarama beach to back up the other members at Bondi, as well as to work with surf lifesavers, officers and paramedics caring for numerous victims. Community Response and Support Doolan’s actions was just one of many to come out of the community, with the patrol base beside the site of the incident transforming into a temporary medical station. It was shared that other team members were also seen responding bravely, including rushing into the ocean to save people who were struggling. In the days after the attack, statements of support flooded in. A social media message expressed appreciation for the lifeguards who exhibited that “compassion will always conquer evil”. The team of lifeguards issued a communication, saying they were “processing what transpired”. “Our thanks go out to all for your thoughtful words and encouragement. We are deeply moved by the compassion for our responders,” the organization commented. “When ready, we will tell our tales in the hope that it helps those involved.” Official Commendation Waverley council, the local authority that employs many permanent beach safety officers, said that the crew rose to the occasion from the second the violence began right into late that nighttime. “There have been so many powerful accounts, but the widely-circulated image of Jackson Doolan, sprinting from Tamarama to Bondi with a AED so he could help save lives is remarkable,” commented a council representative. “Our lifeguards show selflessness every day in keeping our world-famous beaches safe for surfers and swimmers, but what we witnessed on Sunday should be highly praised. “While we mourn and process the terror of this violent and horrific act of violence, I think it is important that we reflect on just how much light we have seen in the midst of such hatred.”
Alexandra Ching, a permanent inhabitant of Bondi, has always considered the famous coast as her back yard. On that fateful Sunday evening, she, like many neighbors, heard loud noises reverberating around the suburb. “Everyone did, but I reasoned it was daylight and no one could see them,” Ching recounts. Exiting her apartment, she witnessed people “streaming up Bondi Road”. The faces she saw told her trouble had occurred. While standing on the street, talking to a pair who had run up the slope in their swimwear, she noticed someone moving up at her rear. The person was a beach patrol officer, running at full speed in the direction of Bondi barefoot from the neighbouring Tamarama beach – a distance of 1.5km – while holding a life-saving kit. “I heard someone say ‘excuse me’, and turning my head I just saw this flash of blue,” she recounts. “He was zooming past. He was the only one moving in the opposite way that all the others was trying to escape from, while holding that sizeable pack and without footwear … He’s running towards something that certainly every fibre in your being would tell you to go in the reverse way. “Without a second thought, but just completely pedal to the metal racing.” An Iconic Image of Courage In the Wake of Chaos The image taken by Ching of the rescuer, now known to be Jackson Doolan, rapidly circulated as a prime example of acts of heroism in the wake of the tragic event. Andy Reid, another lifeguard, says that Doolan, referred to as “Jacko”, hurried from Tamarama beach to back up the other members at Bondi, as well as to work with surf lifesavers, officers and paramedics caring for numerous victims. Community Response and Support Doolan’s actions was just one of many to come out of the community, with the patrol base beside the site of the incident transforming into a temporary medical station. It was shared that other team members were also seen responding bravely, including rushing into the ocean to save people who were struggling. In the days after the attack, statements of support flooded in. A social media message expressed appreciation for the lifeguards who exhibited that “compassion will always conquer evil”. The team of lifeguards issued a communication, saying they were “processing what transpired”. “Our thanks go out to all for your thoughtful words and encouragement. We are deeply moved by the compassion for our responders,” the organization commented. “When ready, we will tell our tales in the hope that it helps those involved.” Official Commendation Waverley council, the local authority that employs many permanent beach safety officers, said that the crew rose to the occasion from the second the violence began right into late that nighttime. “There have been so many powerful accounts, but the widely-circulated image of Jackson Doolan, sprinting from Tamarama to Bondi with a AED so he could help save lives is remarkable,” commented a council representative. “Our lifeguards show selflessness every day in keeping our world-famous beaches safe for surfers and swimmers, but what we witnessed on Sunday should be highly praised. “While we mourn and process the terror of this violent and horrific act of violence, I think it is important that we reflect on just how much light we have seen in the midst of such hatred.”