Aussie hero found dead in Bali
Written by admin on October 18, 2024
An Australian man has been found dead on a Bali beach after being swept out to sea during a selfless attempt to save a tourist, local authorities say.
Perth man Craig Laidley, 56, was swept out to sea on Wednesday afternoon during a heroic attempt to save a German man from drowning in rough surf.
Mr Laidley was walking along Balian Beach in Tabanan, on Bali’s mid-west coast, about 4.30pm when he heard a man who was shouting for help in the surf.
He managed to save the life of 29-year-old German man, Micro Stalla; however, Mr Laidley was swept out to sea and did not make it back to shore.
On Friday, Search and Rescue Denpasar said on its Instagram account that Mr Laidley’s body had been discovered on Secret Beach, 1km west of Balian Beach where he went missing.
“The SAR team who received information about the discovery of the body immediately arrived at the location, then the victim was evacuated to the West Selemadeg Community Health Centre using the Bhuana Bali Rescue Ambulance,” the post said.
Along with 10 people from Denpasar Search and Rescue, several other agencies were also involved in the search for Mr Laidley, including, West Selemadeg Police, Tabanan Police, West Selemadeg Mobile Health Centre and Bhuana Bali Rescue as well as members of the local community.
Conditions during the initial search were described as “extreme”, with rescuers also scouring the nearby beach.
It had been reported that Mr Laidley was from Perth but lived in Bali.
The Department of Foreign Affairs said it was is providing consular assistance to the family of the man who died in Bali.
“We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,” DFAT said in a statement.
“Owing to our privacy obligations we cannot provide further comment.”
