{
  "id": 2853657,
  "title": "Police did not attend near-drowning until two hours after first Triple Zero call",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/23/police-did-not-attend-near-drowning-until-two-hours-after-first",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-23T19:36:38.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-24/near-drowning-two-hour-wait-after-first-triple-zero-call/107067102"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": null,
  "summary": "The near-drowning of 74-year-old David Mason off Tasmania's north-west coast in January highlights significant delays in police response to emergency Triple Zero calls. Despite two separate calls from passers-by, police did not arrive at the scene for two hours, leaving Mason to be rescued by two young fishermen over 90 minutes after entering the water. Tasmania Police has acknowledged the delays and promised to update emergency response operations and provide additional training to better handle similar situations in the future. The incident underscores the critical importance of swift emergency response and the need for improved communication protocols during critical incidents.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}