NEWS of the tragic death of a young father swept to his death by high seas at Snapper Point has re-ignited community debate about   rock fishing  fatalities.

It was the 13th  casualty along a three-kilometre stretch from Wybung Head to Flat Rock, just south of Catherine Hill Bay, in less than five years.

Newcastle Herald readers such as Ray Davidson wrote   that if 13 lives had been lost on  a particular stretch of road there would have been outrage and demands for action.

One option is to legislate the mandatory wearing of helmets, protective clothing and life jackets.

A category 1 auto inflation personal flotation device (PFD) fitted with a global positioning system (GPS)- integrated personal location beacon is one suggestion.

Proponents acknowledge that research would need to be done into what actually happens when someone is swept off rocks in heavy seas. 

For example, do they remain in the immediate vicinity, being dashed against the rocks repeatedly?

Would a PFD exacerbate this problem? 

But if   a person was  swept out to sea via rips and currents   the PFD would be a definite advantage.

The problem, critics say, would be policing the situation. Traditionalists argue that rock fishers can decide for themselves when it is and isn’t safe to venture near the water,  as they have been doing for years.

They suggest that if people used    commonsense then the deaths would be avoided.

They further argue legislation would unfairly impact, in terms of expense and inconvenience, on the majority of rock fisherman who do the right thing.

  Many people feel we don’t need more government regulation in our lives, particularly a recreational pursuit like rock fishing.

They argue that the rise of the nanny state is no guarantee against death as misadventure will always happen.

There have been 13 fatalities involving motorcycles this year alone in NSW in four weeks, despite legal requirements to wear certain equipment and the machines being subject to Australian Standards.

There is risk involved in the activity but as any rider will tell you, it is also a rewarding pursuit, like rock fishing.

A similar comparison might be drawn with recreational boating.

 No one in the boating community argues that the legal requirement to carry an  emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) when  a certain distance offshore is a bad thing.

Such a device enables you to  be located with life-saving accuracy if misfortune occurs.

But again, the issue of policing comes to the fore. Given there are limitations in terms of resources and what can be enforced as to rock fishing along such  a  large coastline,  perhaps a more practical starting point would be to identify where the deaths are occurring and target those areas.

 For example, the stretch along Wybung, Frazer Park and Snapper Point has been an unfortunate ‘‘hotspot’’ for rock fishing fatalities.

Other well-known dangerous platform areas include Seal Rocks and some of the national park areas around Sydney.

You can’t ban rock fishing up and down the east coast. It is impossible to enforce that law.

But maybe a practical starting point  would be to get signs up  on the tracks that lead into these hotspot areas   indicating that rock fishing is or isn’t allowed on  a particular day depending on the nature of the surf – a bit like   fire warning signs which indicate what type of risk exists each day.

If fishing is prohibited on any given day and people are caught fishing  in the affected areas, they risk fines. 

The bottom line is  people  need to  consider themselves, potential rescuers and family members from the consequences of an incident if they go rock fishing.

Yes, you can’t legislate against stupidity or tragedy, but you can educate and warn.

 It’s essential that people respect their own safety and the safety of others, not to mention the sanity of their immediate families.

There are no easy answers, but in the face of recurring, tragically preventable fatalities, something needs to be done.