When a father of three was sucked into a stormwater drain last week his work colleagues refused to loosen their grip until police told them it was time to let him go.
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The colleagues of Paul Smith, 43, kept trying to pull their friend out of the water, long after they realised he had drowned at a Lucas Heights recycling plant in Sydney's south.
His brother Chris Smith said this was a testament to how much he was loved and liked by his work colleagues who were as close as family.
The skies were black and the rain was belting down across Sydney when Paul Smith went to clear a drain that had become blocked with sticks and dirt about 3pm last Monday.
Police said Paul Smith was clearing a drain that sometimes got blocked during heavy rain when he was pulled in by the heavy force of water.
"As hard as it was for them I am glad it was his friends that were with him. They held onto him, they couldn't pull him out and they held onto him until they couldn't any longer," Chris Smith said.
"They were with him the whole time until they were ordered out of the water by police," he said.
WorkCover is investigating.
Paul Smith was working as a supervisor for the Lucas Heights Waste Management and Recycling Centre, operated by SITA Australia, at the time of his death.
"It was just a freak accident that no one would have seen coming," Chris Smith said.
"We are thankful for all the support they [SITA] have given us and it shows how much of a nice guy Paul was. They can't do enough to help us. It's touching.”
All who knew Paul would remember him as a fiercely loyal husband to his wife Karen and a loving father who would to anything for his children Hannah, 20, Eliza, 18, and Emma, 4, his brother said
"He was a wonderful person - the type of guy that would be the first to jump in and help anyone who needed it," Chris Smith said.
"Everyone who met him loved his infectious sense of humour - everyone just loved him.
"He was being the best father he could be. He was so into his daughters and he spent as much time as he could with them."
The Hilltop man was an avid South Sydney Rabbitohs supporter who never went to a game without donning a green wig. His family will drape the club's flag and a signed jersey over his coffin.
His wife had planned a dinner for his 44th birthday last Friday but instead his friends and family gathered to celebrate his life ahead of his funeral on Tuesday.
Chris Smith said his brother was his best friend and struggled to find words that would explain how close they were.
“We were very close, six years apart in age but he was my best mate, we used to do a lot together."
Friends are family are invited to farewell Mr Smith at a service at Forest Lawn Crematorium, Leppington on April 1.
