Media release: NSRI appeal to the public to avoid the Bos 400 wreck

NATIONAL SEA RESCUE INSTITUTE (NSRI) MEDIA RELEASE:

NSRI – STATION 2, Bakoven and STATION 8, Hout Bay

MEDIA RELEASE: NSRI are appealing to the public to avoid the Bos 400 wreck

Sunday, 21 February 2021

The Bos 400 wreck at Maori Bay on the Atlantic Seaboard is a no go area. Boarding the wreck is prohibited. The wreck poses serious dangers to the public.

NSRI are appealing to the public to avoid the wreck and the surrounding rocks at all costs.

Entering the sea around the wreck also poses serious dangers to the public because of jagged corroding metal that has collapsed into the sea surrounding the wreck.

3 rescue operations conducted over the past month highlights the increasing danger that the wreck poses to public members who it appears may be drawn to the wreck for recreational purposes that may be encouraged by social media sites.

NSRI are appealing to professional tour guides to spread the word to highlight the dangers that the wreck poses to the public and to discourage public members from the Bos 400 wreck.

A rescue operation was launched on Saturday afternoon, 20 February, following reports of a drowning in progress at the Bos 400 wreck.

NSRI Hout Bay and NSRI Bakoven dispatched sea rescue craft while WC Government Health EMS and WSAR (Wilderness Search and Rescue) were placed on alert.

On arrival on the scene NSRI discovered a group of twelve young adults, who we believe are students from Stellenbosch, and one member of the party, a young man, had suffered a non-fatal drowning accident and he was suffering from hypothermia.

It appears that while swimming towards the wreck he was caught in currents that naturally swirl around the wreck.

The group admitted that they had come to the wreck to jump into the water from the crane and from the superstructure.

Friends were assisting the casualty on the land side.

The patient was secured into an NSRI Croc and he was taken off the rocks and swum, by NSRI rescue swimmers, to a sea rescue craft where he was taken onboard an NSRI sea rescue craft.

The patient was accompanied by 4 friends, 2 females and 2 males, and in the care of an NSRI paramedic he was brought to the NSRI base in Hout Bay where following medical treatment he was released requiring no further assistance.

The remaining members of their party hiked up the mountain to their vehicles.

In the past few weeks in 2 separate incidents a young female and a young male suffered serious injuries after jumping off the Bos 400 crane into the sea.

The concern is that increased recreational activity in and around the wreck may lead to something more serious and we are strongly urging the public to stay clear of this wreck.

The Bos 400 wreck ran aground in June 1994. Salvors salvaged what could be salvaged despite increasing dangerous conditions in and around the wreck until salvage operations were completed and SAMSA (South African Maritime Safety Authority) posted signage prohibiting the boarding of the wreck citing the dangers the wreck poses from the corroding and collapsing metal infrastructure.

The signage prohibiting boarding of the wreck has also corroded and is no longer visible.

Over the years the wreck has corroded significantly resulting in part of the crane and the super structure to collapse into the sea and storm conditions have washed metal debris in amongst the rocks surrounding Maori Bay.

The corroding metal that has fallen into the sea surrounding the wreck adds to the inherent dangers with jagged rusting metal lying submerged or semi submerged around the wreck and in and around Maori Bay.

It is simply a matter of time for corrosion to cause more of the crane and the super structure to collapse creating an extremely dangerous environment to unsuspecting public members who it appears are being encouraged to use the wreck for recreational purposes.

To add to the danger this is an extremely difficult area in which to conduct a rescue operation.

Despite there being limited cell signal coverage and reduced radio communications in the barely accessible terrain rescue operations at the wreck have at times involved multiple rescue resources, NSRI, WC Government Health EMS, WSAR (Wilderness Search and Rescue), the EMS/AMS Skymed rescue helicopter, CoCT (City of Cape Town) Fire and Rescue Services, CoCT Law Enforcement, TMNP (Table Mountain National Parks) and the SA Police Services at incredible cost not only financially but also posing risks to the rescuers themselves.

The metal infrastructure corrodes and rusts from the centre of the metal outwards, due to salt water corrosion, meaning that where rust is visible on the surface of the metal it has completely corroded on the inside and is at risk of total collapse.

The pathway leading to the wreck, made up of a section of the Karbonkelberg hiking trail that starts at Rocket Road, Llandudno, is also barely accessible, where parts of the trail are steep inclines with no visible pathway. This also hampers land based rescue operations to reach the barely accessible area.

We cannot stress enough that this wreck poses serious dangers to the public and the wreck should be avoided at all costs.

-ENDS-

The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) is the charity organisation that saves lives on South African waters – both coastal and inland. Our goal is to prevent drowning through rescue operations, education and prevention initiatives.

Operating from base stations along the SA coastline, and on inland dams, our rescue volunteers are on call, at all hours, every day of the year. Our rescue crew receives no payment and neither do we charge the people we rescue.

We visit schools around the country, teaching children about water safety. Our drowning prevention measures include our online training academy, with free courses for crew and the public, emergency signage, Pink Rescue Buoys for emergency flotation, rescue swimmers, lifeguards, and active patrols during peak seasons.

Our organisation is totally reliant on donations and sponsorships. This enables us to do the work of saving lives, changing lives, and creating futures.

You can do your bit to assist. Please visit www.nsri.org.za for more information.

SEA RESCUE EMERGENCY: 112 or 087 094 9774

Released by:

Craig Lambinon

SEA RESCUE COMMUNICATIONS

Email: communications@searescue.org.za | Cell: +27 (0) 82 380 3800 | www.searescue.org.za