Search-and-rescue teams have their hands full

It was a busy Easter long-weekend for emergency and rescue services which responded to several incidents including a drowning in Dana Bay in Mossel Bay on Good Friday.

According to the NSRI, a 32-year-old man from Strand, who was on holiday with his family, drowned after being swept away by rip currents.

NSRI Mossel Bay said its duty crew were activated around 12.30pm on Friday following reports from an off-duty fire-and-rescue services officer at Dana Bay of a drowning in progress.

Two men were fishing together reportedly from a shallow sandbank when one man was swept away in rip currents.

The SAPS’ Water Policing and Diving Services were alerted. On arrival at the scene, a man had been assisted from the water and was unhurt, while another was missing. Onlookers spotted the second man in the surf where an NSRI rescue swimmer and a fire-and-rescue services swimmer brought him to the beach.

“CPR efforts were commenced by paramedics and NSRI medics, assisted by a Hartenbos lifeguard. After extensive efforts to resuscitate the man were exhausted, he was declared deceased,” NSRI Mossel Bay station commander JC Roos said.

The Wilderness Search-and-Rescue unit said its teams of professionals and volunteers responded to at least six incidents on Saturday.

In one incident, a woman had collapsed while hiking up the India Venter trail on Table Mountain.

A rescue operation was initiated involving a rescue helicopter.

She was treated by a paramedic before being helped into a rescue harness, hoisted up into the helicopter and taken to a nearby landing zone, a unit spokesperson said.

In a separate incident, a lone 29-year-old hiker placed an emergency call for assistance after finding himself stranded in the middle of a sheer cliff on Table Mountain.

Unable to climb further or safely down climb from the ledge, the hiker waited to be rescued,” according to the spokesperson.

In Plettenberg Bay emergency services appealed to day walkers and hikers, who might be planning to hike the Plettenberg Bay Robberg Nature Reserve trail to be “fully prepared for a gruelling hike that is often too arduous for hikers and day walkers”.

This after they were called to assist at the hiking trail where a woman, suffering reported heat stroke, required medical assistance last week.

Public on the South Cape coast were alerted that three blue sealed chemical containers had washed ashore at different locations. They were inspected and found to be of no further risk.

“But as is normal the emergency services remain on 24-hour alert” to inform the public, the Garden District Municipality Fire Services in co-operation with the Garden District Disaster Management team and NSRI Southern Cape said in a joint statement on Sunday.

Cape Times