A bereaved family has paid tribute to a man who died after being pulled unresponsive from the water during a group rescue in the NSW Hunter Region.
Kyrus Macalalad, 33, drowned at Stockton Beach in Port Stephens on Wednesday while swimming with three friends.
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The four were caught in a rip with one friend making it out and bystanders left to pull the other three from the surf.
Rescuers attempted to revive Macalalad, however he died at the scene.
“On arrival we found three other people that had also been rescued and needing various levels of treatment,” Surf Life Saving NSW state duty officer Glen Dunkley said.
“Unfortunately, one person was unable to be saved, despite the best efforts of all the emergency services on the beach.”
Paramedics treated a woman in a critical condition and a second man in a stable condition before they were both taken to John Hunter Hospital.
A third man was also treated at the scene, but did not require any further medical assistance.
“Thank you for being such a good person inside and out, you are most loved by everyone for your goodness your kindness,” Macalalad’s parents Dolan and Marlo said.
Macalalad’s death was the second at the same beach in the last two weeks.
“Kyrus is a perfect example of what a big brother is, he always looked after his friends and family,” Macalalad’s brother Lexus said.
“I will miss you, we love you so much, fly high Kyrus,” his other brother Jeko said.
While lifeguards at Stockton Beach are stretched to the limit with the surge of summer visitors, support is on its way from Sydney.
“(Today) we’ve transported into this region lifesavers and more lifeguards from Sydney,” Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steven Pearce said.
It’s the eighth drowning this summer in NSW, the same for all of December last year.
Since the first of July, there have been 28 drowning related deaths, double the amount compared with 2022.