Medical assistance - Port Alfred. Search for boats that raised eye-witness concerns - Betty's Bay. Surf-skier rescued - Simon's Town:

PORT ALFRED:Stephen Slade, NSRI Port Alfred deputy station commander, said:At 10h12, Saturday, 23rd June, NSRI Port Alfred medical crew assisted an adult male at Shelly Beach parking area.The man was reported by bystanders to be suffering seizures.Our NSRI medics stabilised the patient and a Gardmed ambulance was summoned to the scene and on their arrival the man was taken into the care of paramedics.The man was transported to hospital by Garmed ambulance in a stable condition.BETTY'S BAY:Deon Langenhoven, NSRI Hermanus station commander, said:At 11h35, Saturday, 23rd June, NSRI Hermanus duty crew were activated following eye-witness reports of a yacht appearing to be under tow or being assisted in some way by a fishing boat and appearing to not be making any progress off-shore of Betty's Bay raising eye-witness concerns who raised the alarm.Although the boats involved had not called for any assistance NSRI requested Telkom Maritime Radio Services to attempt to make VHF radio contact with the boats and after no reply was received, as a precaution, the sea rescue craft South Star was launched to go to investigate.The Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) were alerted and Telkom Maritime Radio Services assisted NSRI with VHF communications.On NSRI arriving in the vicinity no sign of the fishing boat or the yacht was found and it appears that they had carried on on their way South as they were no longer in the vicinity off-shore of Betty's Bay or the surrounding area.With no report of any distress from either the yacht or the fishing boat NSRI returned to base.SIMON'S TOWN:Darren Zimmerman, NSRI Simon's Town station commander, said:At 14h31, Saturday, 23rd June, NSRI Simon's Town duty crew were activated by the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) following a request for assistance from 3 surf-skiers reporting their 4th member, during a down wind paddle, had gone missing at sea between Romans Rock Lighthouse and Millers Point.The 4 paddlers, on a down wind paddle, 3 paddlers had lost sight of their 4th member and they had tried to locate their friend who was separated from them while paddling but after not finding him they raised the alarm.NSRI Simon's Town duty crew launched the sea rescue craft Spirit of Safmarine III and Spirit of Surfski II and our sea rescue vehicle responded along the shoreline.WC Government Health EMS and CMR (Cape Medical Response) were placed on alert.Our network of Coast watchers were alerted and almost immediately our Coast watchers reported red distress flare sightings off-shore between Simon's Town and Millers Point.Reports from our Coast watchers Network confirmed additional red distress flare sightings about 3 kilometers out to sea and a compass bearing on the red distress flare sighting, provided by the Coast watchers was relayed by the Coast watcher to the NSRI Simon's Town Operations Room and the sea rescue craft headed in that direction.A CMR ambulance was dispatched to stand-by at the NSRI Simon's Town sea rescue station.TNPA Port Control and NSRI Operations Control were receiving additional eye-witness reports of the red distress flares (6 red distress flares had been set off by the casualty).A member of the public using binoculars had been able to physically sight the paddler in distress but in the rough sea conditions sight of the paddler was lost behind sea swells.The sea rescue craft, moving in line with the compass bearing provided by the Coast watcher, arrived on the scene and following a brief search a 47 year old local man was found gradually being swept further out to sea by an off-shore wind after capsizing his surf-ski.Both the man and his surf-ski were recovered onto the sea rescue craft and treatment for hypothermia and for an arm injury was initiated.He was brought to our sea rescue station where CMR paramedics treated the man for hypothermia and his arm injury was treated and his wife came to collect him and she took him to Constantiaberg Medi-Clinic to have his arm looked at.The man had capsized after a wind squall came through and on capsizing he injured his arm which prevented him to get back into his surf-ski and he drifted staying with his surf-ski and he set off red distress flares.His friends who had been a bit ahead of him had turned around to search for him but not being able to find him in the big sea swells they then raced to shore to raise the alarm.NSRI commend the Coast watchers who were able to quickly pin point the position of the red flares and we commend the many community members who called in the red distress flare sightings.NSRI urge paddlers and boaters to download and use the NSRI free phone app RSA SafeTrxTO REPORT A SEA RESCUE EMERGENCY DIAL 112 FROM A CELLPHONE