All the locals at Point Lookout knew when the Baskerville boys were on holidays at Straddie, again there were no water filled lagoons on the beaches trapped high by nature’s ever changing cycle. We became a kind of Amnesty International for beach lagoons with a self obsessive mandate to set free any of these ensnared waters whenever or wherever we would find them. Led by Squadron Leader Dam Buster David, we would troll the beaches in search of any lagoon we could identify as primed and targeted for release. One time all the brothers were at 2nd Cylinder with the church youth group, when we discovered a perfectly positioned large volume lagoon stranded high on the beach. It was a perfect target given that the tide at that moment was at it’s optimum lowest point. The Baskerville boys soon began their now customary setting free routine, with just a little help from some rather junior cadets of our dam-busting fraternity. One such cadet that day was a new loud mouthed member with long dark hair, an olive tanned skin and self styled Casanova demeanor. Well, the digging and draining on this particular occasion went well a little too well, I might add!
It was as if the long stilled and separated waters of the lagoon could wait not a moment longer to be reunited with it’s previous wave crashing ocean parent, and proceeded in that joining endeavor with a mighty intent. It was a truly incredible sight as we watched that huge volume of water surge through the narrow gap and carved out sand cliffs of the hole we had just created. It took all our physical effort to just stand and watch in awe as the rushing torrent swept around our Pisa leaning bodies, some 10 meters from the lagoon breach.
Now as you would expect, our much too smooth Casanova with a chest measurement in straight and perfect symmetry with his thighs, decided to jump into the middle of nature’s mighty demonstration in the vain hope to imbibe some of its energy and power for the obvious impression of the opposite sex gathered there and watching. Well, nature’s course that day was set and resolute and had no empathy for such wanton macho wishes. The raging cannoning waters simply proceeded to sweep him into a deep trap, being the high volume wash cycle of death. At first, the Baskerville boys watched in great amusement as he came up for air on the first cycle with arms flaying and then being dragged backwards and under by this powerful revolving cycle.
Our laughter was soon restrained however, when on the second time round we witnessed only his arms coming up for air as his head and body was spiralled backwards in nature’s unrelenting death roll. We all then experienced that helpless inner panic that everyone must feel when they witness a life threatening situation but find themselves powerless to do anything about it. We all tried valiantly to move against the raging torrent in an effort to provide salvation, but none could. Then something happened that I have never been able to understand fully to this day. Out of my peripheral vision I saw Tom start surging forward through the driving force set against us and traverse the 10 meters to the edge of the deep rotating trap. At his very moment of arrival the lifeless black mop of black hair surfaced once more and he just reached out and grabbed it. He then pulling it with its attached body, towards the safer rapids making their divergent way out to sea. In this one miraculous moment, Tom was able to short circuit nature’s circling death trap and I believe he saved a life. Why none of us could make the slightest impression on that powerful force and yet he was able to just effortlessly serge the 10 meters when required, will stay in my mind forever. Well, the embarrassed, spluttering hero soon recovered sufficiently to declare to all that would listen the daring of his exploits, but none of us who witnessed that event will ever forget the quiet determined and cool ability that Tom displayed that day, that saved a life. [Photos]
