Spencer Oldham, NSRI Hout Bay station commander, said: At 20h06, Saturday, 20 June, NSRI Hout Bay duty crew were activated following a request for assistance, made to NSRI EOC (Emergency Operations Centre) from a local 8-meter fishing vessel, with 5 local male crew onboard, reporting motor mechanical failure and at anchor offshore of Slangkop Lighthouse, Kommetjie.
Our duty crew responded to our NSRI Hout Bay station 8 rescue base where our NSRI rescue craft Albie Matthews was launched and our NSRI Hout Bay rescue vehicle responded to the shore side above Kommetjie.
Our NSRI rescue vehicle arrived shoreside where our shore crew established visuals of the casualty vessel offshore of Slangkop Lighthouse.
NSRI requested the skipper of the casualty vessel, in efforts to assist our rescue craft crew to find them in the poor night visibility conditions, to deploy a red distress flare when the rescue craft reached the area.
On the NSRI rescue craft approaching offshore of Slangkop Lighthouse, in calm seas, the casualty crew deployed a red distress flare. Our NSRI crew on our rescue craft responded to their red distress flare by deploying a white illuminating flare.
Our NSRI rescue craft reached the casualty vessel, they were adrift, reportedly having weighed anchor, and NSRI crew were transferred onto the fishing vessel and a towline was established.
Without incident the casualty vessel was towed to Hout Bay Harbour and moored safely, and no further assistance was required.
The operation was completed at 23h30.
A rehabilitated Cape Gannet released at sea in cooperation with CROW (Centre for Rehabilitation of Wildlife)
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