Little boy who drowned on school camp to receive proper farewell
A large memorial service is being planned after Victoria’s latest COVID-19 lockdown ends for the little boy who drowned while on school camp.
Cooper Onyett drowned at Belfast Aquatics pool in Port Fairy on May 21 while on his first overnight camp with his grade two class from Merrivale Primary School.
Though the family had originally planned to farewell Cooper in their hometown of Warrnambool on Friday, their appeal to be exempt from Victoria’s lockdown rules for the number of guests at the funeral was denied.
Under the lockdown restrictions, the family held a small service of eight people.
“She had been incredibly understanding given the tragic circumstances, but she wants to be able to bring the community together, bring Cooper’s friends together and have that farewell that he deserves,” Federal Minister Dan Tehan said on Sunday.
The tragic incident is still under investigation by the coroner.
“I am really disappointed in how this played out. The Acting Premier gave the family a glimmer of hope yesterday morning that there might be an exemption,” Member for South West Coast Roma Britnell told 7NEWS on Friday.
“She will celebrate Cooper’s life after the lockdown.”
During Friday’s press conference, Chief Health Officer Brett Sutton commented on the decision, saying it would be one of the most difficult ones the exemption team would have to make.
“I can’t express enough sorrow for the family. The exemptions team did assess the request and speak to the family. I wasn’t personally involved,” he said.
“I understand the request was declined.”
A GoFundMe page set up to help the family cover the costs of Cooper’s funeral has already raised more than $110,000.
Image credit: 7NEWS