THE sudden death of Blacktown City Mayor, Tony Bleasdale OAM, while on a flight home to Sydney from an official visit to China has shocked the community with tributes flowing for "a great servant of the city"..
“The Bleasdale family is shocked as with the many people contacting the council,” Blacktown Deputy Mahyor, Clr Quilkey said.
“It has been a shock for everybody here at the council, and many local people are saddened by his death. We are in touch with his family.”
Clr Bleasdale, 77, was leading a delegation on official visit to Laiocheng City in the Shandong province of China and Daegu City in South Korea as the countries among Blacktown City’s current Sister Cities.
Clr Bleasdale has served NSW’s largest council with more than 400,000 residents since 1996, representing Ward 5.
He was awarded the Order of Australia (OAM) medal in 2010 for his long years of service to the Blacktown community, his many charity achievements supported and praised by peers and the wider community.
He was elected the city’s mayor in 2019 and has been among the esteemed members of the Australian Labor Party.
Clr Bleasdale was born in Liverpool, United Kingdom and survived by his wife Nina Bleasdale and their four children.
