On Easter Sunday, two individuals drowned and perished in separate incidents in the Port Stephens and Illawarra regions.
At Fingal Beach in the NSW Hunter district, a man in his 70s who was reported to be unresponsive was rescued from the water.
Soon after 10 am, paramedics arrived at the scene and started CPR on the man.
But they were unable to save him, and he passed away there and then.
A second man perished under similar circumstances not long after the horrific tragedy, more than 340 km to the south.
At at 2:55 p.m., a man in his 60s was extricated from the ocean at Killalea Beach near Shell Cove in the state of Illawarra.
Following reports that he was asleep in the water, emergency personnel showed up.
NSW paramedics tried CPR, but they were equally unsuccessful in reviving the patient.
The Port Stephens Hunter Police District and the Lake Illawarra Police District have each started their own investigations, however neither man has been formally identified.
