SEARCH FOR MISSING MAN AT BLOUBERG
An unidentified man went missing on Sunday while surfing just off Bloubergstrand Beach.
According to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), eyewitnesses reported a man appearing to be in difficulty at around 13:20 on Sunday.
The man was in the surf zone at the beach next to the Dolphin Beach Hotel.
NSRI Melboksstrand’s station commander, Rowan Marais, the NSRI acted immediately.
“NSRI Melkbosstrand rescue swimmers responded directly to the scene, while our NSRI duty crew responded to our NSRI Melkbosstrand station 18 rescue base, where the NSRI rescue craft Rotary's Gift and Rescue 18 Alpha were launched. Additional eyewitness reports were being received by NSRI Emergency Operations Centre, indicating that the male person was in the water in distress.”
Several rescue teams in and around the city of Cape Town came together on the scene. This included sea, air and shoreline searches like the Western Cape Government Health EMA, the South African Police Services’ (SAPS) water policing and diving services, and the EMS Aerial Drone Rescue Unit.
At the time of publication, there were no signs of the missing male.
“The missing person, believed to be a black male, remains unidentified and is believed to have been wearing shorts and a pink cap when entering the water and getting into difficulty before disappearing in the surf zone,” Marais said.
Image credit: Cape Town ETC