STATION 37, Jeffreys Bay. STATION 9, Gordons Bay. STATION 17, Hermanus. STATION 10, Simonstown. STATION 20, Shelly Beach. STATION 5, Durban.
SEA RESCUE – National – Sunday, 03 January. Jeffreys Bay, Paternoster, Kleinmond, Simonstown, Shelly beach, Durban:
JEFFREYS BAY:
At 18h30, Saturday, 02 January, NSRI Jeffreys Bay duty crew responded to Secrets Beach following reports of 2 25 year old women, from Pretoria, being swept out to sea in rip currents.
2 surfers swam out to help them and taking life jackets with them they were able to assist both ladies to rocks where NSRI rescuers assisted to bring them safely ashore.
1 woman was seriously injured, lapsing in and out of consciousness, and she was treated for non-fatal drowning symptoms and transported to hospital by Private Care ambulance in a stable but serious condition and she is expected to fully recover.
The 2nd woman did not require assistance.
The 2 surfers who launched to assist them are commended for their successful efforts.
NSRI Jeffreys Bay then assisted with an Elephant Seal, not normally found in the area, that was on the beach at Aston Bay and appeared to be being harassed by curious bystanders.
Bay World were activated and together NSRI and Bay World loaded the seal onto a bakkie and transported it to Paradise Beach (between Paradise Beach and the Krom River) to a quieter area on the beach and the seal, not injured, was left to continue on its day.
KLEINMOND:
At 22h48, Saturday, 02 January, NSRI Gordons Bay and NSRI Hermanus were activated following a request for assistance from the Gordons Bay 40 foot yacht Safala, with 3 persons onboard, 2 local men and an Australian woman (all adults), reporting to have a snapped anchor chain and being swept towards rocks at Maas Baai near to Kleinmond.
NSRI Gordons Bay and NSRI Hermanus launched sea rescue craft and on arrival on the scene found the yacht hard aground on rocks.
The woman was taken off the yacht while the two crew men remained onboard and an NSRI rescuer was put aboard the yacht where a tow-line was rigged and the yacht was pulled off the rocks using the NSRI Hermanus deep sea rescue craft South Star.
Once in deep water the crew reported no damage to their yacht and the NSRI rescuer was taken off the yacht aboard the NSRI Gordons Bay sea rescue craft Spirit of Surfski.
Telkom Maritime Radio Services assisted with VHF radio communications and NSRI Simonstown dispatched a rescue vehicle to stand-by on the scene to assist.
The yacht motored to Gordons Bay without incident under the watchful eye of the NSRI and once safely in Gordons Bay they required no further assistance.
The lady was brought to Gordons Bay by NSRI and transported to her home.
No one was injured.
SHELLY BEACH:
On the morning of Sunday, 03 January, NSRI Shelly Beach dispatched rescue swimmers to assist Police Search and Rescue divers searching for the body of a 9 year old local boy who had gone missing the night before in the St Michaels Lagoon.
A Police search since the evening before yielded no sign of the child and during the ongoing search this morning the bidy of the child was located and recovered and taken into the care of the Forensic Pathology Services.
Police have opened an inquest docket.
DURBAN:
At 05h00, Sunday, 03 January, the NSRI Durban Duty Controller received a call from the Transnet National ports authority reporting an overturned ski boat at the Isipingo Ski Boat launch site with 2 people reportedly in the water.
The sea rescue craft Megan II was launched from Durban and the Duty controller and Station Commander responded directly to the launch site in their private vehicles.
On arrival on scene 2 ski boats were launched from the nearby Warner Doone ski boat club and assisted the people from the water and to pull the overturned boat out of the surf zone.
Once clear of the surf, the boat was righted and then the casualties and boat were brought ashore at Isipingo Launch Site.
The boat was a 3.9m single engine rubber duck, with two local fishermen on board.
There were no injuries and no further assistance was required.
Then at 08h15 the Durban Duty Controller received a call via Durban APC that a harbour pilot on board a ship entering the port had seen a red distress flare from a small vessel just South of the Durban harbour entrance.
The 7m RIB Megan II was launched to investigate and upon arrival on scene found a fisherman on his jet ski.
It appears that the fisherman had fallen off his jet ski and being unable to climb back on had fired a red pencil flare.
The flare had been seen by an adjacent fishing ski boat who had responded to assist and the fisherman now being back on his jetski required no further assistance.
SIMONSTOWN:
At 08h04, Sunday 03 January, NSRI Simonstown launched sea rescue craft and the EMS/AMS Skymed rescue helicopter was activated following reports from Paddlers off Simonstown who had lost sight of one of the paddlers in their group.
The paddlers had raced to shore to raise the alarm and reported last seeing their fellow paddler in the vicinity of Roman Rock.
During a search the paddler was found drifting and holding onto his surf-ski. He had drifted in the direction of Glencairn and he was rescued onto a Sea Rescue craft and brought ashore safely and his surf-ski was recovered.
He had fallen out of his surf-ski and was not able to get back on.
-ENDS-
Simon's Town's Spirit of Surfski 2
