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Heartbroken family 'numb' with grief after toddler drowns in Victorian dam

June 5, 2024 - 9.43am

A family has been left heartbroken after their two-year-old son drowned in a dam near Geelong last night.

Luka Huddle's body was found in dam waters by police after he went missing from the family property in Lara about 5.30pm.

Emergency services tried to revive the two-year-old but he died at the scene, with his distraught mother, Karin Huddle, nearby.

His mother spoke to media this morning and said she felt "numb" with grief.

Luka had been playing outside while she was feeding the horses in the moments before his disappearance.

She believed he had wandered off with his dog, Poppy.

When Poppy came back to the property wet, she ran to the dam.

"Poppy was wet. That's what alerted me," Huddle said.

"I ran to the damn and we couldn't find him. We had police help."

Luka was found unresponsive with the assistance of rescue crews.

Huddle said she was still in "shock" and said her son could have fallen into the dam.

"He loved swimming and he wasn't afraid of water. He was so water-safe," she said.

"He would have never gone into the water."

Speaking this morning, Huddle was supported by her mother and her two horses.

One of those horses was named Finley, Luka's "pride and joy".

"(Finley) loves Luka and it's going to hurt him," she said.

"He knows there's something not right."

Huddle hoped by addressing media, she could shine a light on the need for "adequate" fencing.

"The fence is so poor," she said.

"Fencing in this area, it's disgusting... and atrocious."

Luka was Huddle's only child, she described him as a little boy with an infectious smile.

"He was cheeky, mischievous and adventurous," she said.

"He had the biggest smile on his face every morning.

"I don't have a lot of words for how I feel, I am very angry at the fences and at myself."

It's understood the dam is located on private property.

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