Nick Hopton

WILLIAMSTOWN is unlikely to gain a nationwide stigma associated with tragedy similar to Snowtown or Truro after the murder-suicide at the nearby Whispering Wall, Barossa Mayor Bim Lange says.

“No, I would not have thought so, but who knows?” Mr Lange said after Henry David Shepherdson, 38, of Torrensville jumped over the Barossa Reservoir wall last Wednesday, killing himself
and his nine-month-old daughter, Kobi.

The infant’s death has triggered nationwide anger and sorrow, and has increased calls for more to be done to prevent domestic violence.

“I would like to think not (that Williamstown would get a stigma) but it’s what ramifications this sort of incident has,” said Mr Lange, who lives in Williamstown.

“Everyone’s heart had gone out to the mother and we don’t know all the circumstances on how something like this can occur.

“The Snowtown (bodies-in-the-) barrels issue was really something very horrific, which a number of people were involved in over a period of time, whereas this was what appears to be a snap decision by the person involved to do something, although he had not appeared to be threatening to do something like this.

“As you know, we’re a pretty quiet little village; not too much happens as far as anything like this and that’s what we are pretty proud of.

“But it comes as a shock when it is this close to your back door like this.

"It is very traumatic for everybody, and I think more the fact that it personalises the issue, seeing that it was such a young girl.”

Mr Lange said little Kobi “had her whole life in front of her”.

“The photos that her mother released really hit home on what a beautiful young girl she was,” Mr Lange said.

“When I heard the news, all those questions come into your head – how can this happen?

“Why do these things need to happen? And you just like to think somewhere along the line that we can try to put a stop to these tragic events, especially being a murder- suicide. I mean suicides are bad enough to deal with, with the flow-on effect it has on families and everything else.

“In this case, It’s really, really traumatic for those people who were out on the scene – the mother, the family, the grandparents, as well as the responding people.

“..unfortunately, the Whispering Wall is a very popular destination for tourists.

“It’s tragic that people use facilities like this for those sorts of terrible incidents.”

Mr Lange said last Wednesday’s events at the popular tourist destination were “traumatic “ for first responders.

“I was a CFS group officer some years ago and it was bad enough going out to vehicle accidents, especially when there are young kiddies involved, but something as horrific as this, it’s something as a volunteer, you don’t expect to witness something as bad as what they had to endure the other day,” he said.

The Whispering Wall is on SA Water land and Barossa Council has no say in its running.

Asked if council could still have a role to play in helping to ensure similar tragedies did not occur, Mr Lange said: “Public safety is paramount with all authorities, whether it’s our facilities or government facilities.

“So I am certain they’ll have their own internal assessment and consider what’s needed.

“But I guess the unfortunate reality is that if they (suicide victims) don’t do something like that here, they’ll do it somewhere else.”

Domestic violence support:
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) or 1800respect.org.au
Lifeline: 13 11 14 or lifeline.org.au
Suicide Callback Service: 1300 659 467