Sri Lankan father of two sons drowned in Camber Sands tragedy slams lack of lifeguards
THE heartbroken father of two brothers who drowned off the coast of Camber Sands has blasted the lack of lifeguards on the beach.
Satthiyanathan Arumukam, 51, has told how he brought his boys to the UK from Sri Lanka because he "thought it would be safe for my family to live in Britain".
The grieving dad's sons Ken and Kobi from Erith, south east London, drowned trying to rescue two pals who were trapped underwater in sticky quick sand, it was revealed yesterday.
The four men, along with another friend who tried to rescue the pair, died after being dragged to their deaths by a powerful riptide.
Mr Arumukam said: “I brought my children from Sri Lanka because it is not safe back there. I thought it would be safe for my family to live in Britain.
“But there were no lifeguards on the beach where they died.
“If there had been my sons would have at least had a fighting chance of survival.
“There were 25,000 people on Camber Sands that day and yet no one saved them.
“It is very, very sad but neither of my sons could swim.”
Dangers of hidden rip tides
RIP tides or rip currents can occur on any beach where there are breaking waves.
The RNLI’s Ross MacLeod said: “Water breaks over sandbars and finds deeper channels creating a current below the surface.
“People can panic when they feel they are being pulled out to sea and that is dangerous.
“It is best to relax, try to float and signal for help. A confident swimmer could try to swim across the current, parallel to the shore to reach calmer waters.
“Don’t swim against the current as they can flow at up to 4.5mph.
“If you spot someone in trouble don’t go in after them as you could face the same problem.
“Call 999 and ask for the Coastguard who will deploy the RNLI. The best option is to swim at a beach with a lifeguard and red and yellow flags for safe water.”
The five boys had travelled from London to Camber Sands to make the most of the hottest day of the year so far.
But the mates — all of Sri Lankan origin — were caught by the incoming tide after wading out to an offshore sand bar to play football.
Kenugen Nathan, 19 and Inthushan Sriskantharasa, 23, got stuck in quicksand-like conditions — and Ken’s brother Kobikanthan, 21, Nitharsan Ravi, 22 and Kurushanth Srithavarajah, 26, were caught by the rising waters as they desperately tried to free them.
It is understood they were then dragged to their deaths by a powerful riptide.
The three would-be rescuers were pulled from the sea within half an hour on Wednesday afternoon but could not be revived.
The bodies of the trapped pair were washed up on the East Sussex beach six hours later.
Nitharsan’s heartbroken brother Ajirthan, 19, said: “Ken and Inthushan got stuck under the water in the mud and sand and the three friends went under to try and save them.
“But all five of them got into difficulty and sadly died.
“Kurushanth was brought out dead first. My brother and Kobi were brought out afterwards.
“They both had a pulse for 15 minutes while paramedics tried to save them. Ken and Inthushan then came out at 8pm because they were underneath the water and the emergency services did not know they were there.
“They got stuck, their legs were sucked in like quicksand.”
He added: “They were best friends and had planned the day trip knowing it was going to be a sunny day.
“We understand that they all went out together when the tide was low and were able to walk a long way from the shore.
“But then a big wave came and they were all swept out and it was too deep and they couldn’t get back.
“They tried to swim back but couldn’t make it because of the currents.
“They drowned because of a lack of stamina from the tidal effect.
“I didn’t sleep at all last night, we are all so upset.”
I brought my children from Sri Lanka because it is not safe back there. I thought it would be safe for my family to live in Britain
Heartbroken dad Satthiyanathan Arumukam
Nitharsan’s sister Mayura, 17, added: “I just want him back because it just feels like a dream. It doesn’t feel real.”
The five were wearing shorts and T-shirts which had wrongly prompted speculation that they were migrants.
Satthiyanathan Arumukam, 51, the father of brothers Ken and Kobi, of Erith, South East London, said: “I brought my children from Sri Lanka because it is not safe back there. I thought it would be safe for my family to live in Britain.
“But there were no lifeguards on the beach where they died.
“If there had been my sons would have at least had a fighting chance of survival.
“There were 25,000 people on Camber Sands that day and yet no one saved them.
“It is very, very sad but neither of my sons could swim.”
Tesco worker Kurushanth from Woolwich, South East London, died two days before his 27th birthday.
A family friend said: “It’s such a shock.
“He was an amazing person — so friendly and kind.”
Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne said: “People need to understand that although the sun is shining and the sea is lovely to play in there are dangers there that you need to know about.
“My first reaction to this was there are riptides that happen at Camber Sands and people do not understand about riptides.”
Coastguards carried out patrols on the beach yesterday.
Will Chetwode, 42, who runs a boating firm near Camber Sands said there were “weird” tides on Wednesday. He added: “It must have been something to do with the direction of the waves.”
Yesterday a man in his 80s drowned after getting into difficulty off Bognor Regis, West Sussex.
