www.monumentaustralia.org.au

Amanda Frost, Candice Rutten, Nathan Rutten, Renne Tawa & Stephanie TawaPrint Page Print this page

10-October-2017
10-October-2017

Photographs supplied by John Huth

The monument commemorates Amanda Frost (5), Candice Rutten (7), Nathan Rutten (3), Renne Tawa (2) and Stephanie Tawa (6 weeks) who drowned in the N`Gluka boating tragedy in January 1990.

The tears may not come as often as they once did but Nelson Bay mother Sue Frost has never stopped wondering what life may have held for her daughter Amanda. Today marks 20 years since Amanda and four other children drowned, trapped onboard the overloaded 12-metre cruiser N'Gluka when it capsized and sank off Nelson Bay.

They will lay flowers at a memorial on the Nelson Bay waterfront to honour Amanda and the other children killed with her when the N'Gluka sank on its return from a lunch cruise across Port Stephens on January 8, 1990.

Trapped with Amanda in the cabin below decks were Candice, 7, and Nathan Rutten, 3, of Salamander Bay, and their Sydney cousins Stephanie, 2, and Renee Tawa, six weeks old.

No amount of time could fill the void of losing a child, but coping skills did improve, Ms Frost said.  And the Nelson Bay community still rallied around.

At the time of its sinking, the N'Gluka was dangerously overloaded with 49 people on board. Just why the cruiser suddenly tilted and then capsized remains unclear, despite a coronial inquest and ensuing civil proceedings that reached Australia's High Court. N'Gluka skipper and owner Dennis Warner was found guilty in 1990 of culpable navigation and sentenced to periodic detention.
Newcastle Herald, 7 January 2010. 

Location

Address:Victoria Parade, Nelson Bay, 2315
State:NSW
Area:AUS
GPS Coordinates:Lat: -32.719852
Long: 152.145657
Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate.
View Google Map

Details

Monument Type:Monument
Monument Theme:People
Sub-Theme:Tragedy
Actual Event Start Date:08-January-1990
Actual Event End Date:08-January-1990
Designer:Eric Brae

Dedication

Front Inscription

In memory of the five children drowned in the N`Gluka boating tragedy off Snapper Point on 8th January, 1990

Amanda Frost
Aged 5 years

Candice Rutten    Candice Rutten
Aged 7 years        Aged 3 years

Renne Tawa          Stephanie Tawa 
Aged 2½ years      Aged 6 weeks

In God`s care and forever in our hearts

 

 

Source: MA
Monument details supplied by Monument Australia - www.monumentaustralia.org.au