A rock fisher for decades, Mr Finney had been fishing for hours, not suspecting for one moment that the backwash of one wave would almost take his life.

He turned away from the sea momentarily when a wave seemed to take him from nowhere. His lifejacket was in his bag. 

As he struggled to stay afloat in foaming water, a mate on the platform grabbed the angel ring that was at hand. He got it to a shocked and struggling Mr Finney, who was winched to safety by a rescue helicopter that had been training nearby.

What saved him in the first instance was the angel ring.

When the Register made enquiries about the feasibility of installing angel rings at rock fishing hot spots some months ago, we received an almost reflexive response from Shoalhaven City Council. It was too expensive, we were told, the Shoalhaven’s coastline was far too long.

Further questions revealed a large part of the cost was bureaucratic. A DA had to be submitted, and all sorts of investigations mounted. One figure touted was that it would cost $15,000 per angel ring. 

This seems ludicrous given one can have a simple car port installed for less. How much can it cost to install a pole, a bracket and an angel ring – a structure we know can save lives? 

When we enquired later, we were referred to a state rock fishing association, which told us in turn that the matter resided with council. 

So much buck-passing when lives are at stake is grotesque.

So with the busy holiday season just over the horizon, we call on the state and local governments to move beyond the bureaucratic inertia and have as many angel rings installed as are necessary. If they save one life, the investment will be worth it.