Hartbeespoort Dam - Search for a missing man after car plunges into the dam and assistance at a boat capsized.:

NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam duty crew were activated following reports of a suspected vehicle accident where a passenger sedan was located by a towing service who were alerted to the location of a vehicle with a battery disconnect by a vehicle tracking company and on arriving on the scene the vehicle was found to be semi submerged in dense Hyacinth in Hartbeespoort Dam appearing to have left the roadway plunging into the dam at the Randburg Bridge.

Arthur Crewe, NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam station commander, said:

At 23h45, Saturday, 19 March, NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam duty crew were activated following reports of a suspected vehicle accident where a passenger sedan was located by a towing service who were alerted to the location of a vehicle with a battery disconnect by a vehicle tracking company and on arriving on the scene the vehicle was found to be semi submerged in dense Hyacinth in Hartbeespoort Dam appearing to have left the roadway plunging into the dam at the Randburg Bridge.

Our NSRI rescue swimmers, SRU (Strategic Rescue Unit) members, SA Police Services and the Police Dive Unit responded.

On arrival on the scene rescue swimmers confirmed that there were no occupants in the vehicle.

In investigations it was determined that the owner of the vehicle, an adult male from Gauteng, had been in the vehicle when it left the road and he may have been ejected from the vehicle into dense Hyacinth in the dam and he is missing.

A search was initiated, hampered by dense Hyacinth, and the ongoing search resumed on Sunday.

Big D and Eagle towing services recovered the vehicle from the dam under the authority and supervision of Police.

Police have opened an investigation.

Police divers, assisted by NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam, are continuing in a search for the missing man.

Our thoughts are with the family of the missing man in this difficult time.

During the ongoing search, at 09h18, Sunday, 20 March, NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam duty crew were diverted to reports of a Pencil Duck boat capsized near to Cosmos on Hartbeespoort Dam.

Our sea rescue craft Sea Legs responded and on arrival on the scene we found the 2 crew had managed to get back into their boat after it had capsized and the boat had engine failure.

They were assessed and found to not be injured and we towed their boat to Cosmos without incident and after their boat was recovered they required no further assistance.