Drowning along the Eastern Coast of South Africa summer 2014-2015
04/02/2015
During past high season 2014-2015, Safe Coastal Tourism (SCT) recorded following drowning incidents along the Eastern Coast of South Africa. SCT has drawn up this list by searching on the internet for news articles which are public.
Five people drown in two months at Coffee Bay. (6/12/2014)
... meaning Coffee Bay is not that safe for swimming as it pretends to be:
The village of Coffee Bay, just 8 km down the road from the Hole, is real beachcomber country with rustic lodges and bars, gorgeous swimming beaches, excellent fishing and breathtaking hikes.
...Not only is the kilometer-long beach safe for swimming, but the area off the bay’s southern point offers one of the few consistent surfing waves on the Wild Coast.
Add these incidents to the following list, and I wonder how many more drowning incidents are needed before any action is taken by local touristic sector.
1/4/2002 - A visit by a Mpumalanga couple to the Eastern Cape ended tragically when a 27-year-old woman drowned in Coffee Bay on Saturday, police said. Peatro Hendrika van der Berg, from Belfast, was standing on the rocks fishing with her husband Leon and a friend when strong waves swept them into the sea. Police said Leon and the friend managed to swim to safety. They tried to rescue Peatro, but were unsuccessful. Local lifesaver Johny Lange was contacted to assist, but Peatro was found dead on the rocks.
15/7/2002 - a Friday afternoon of playing and splashing by the rocks at Umtata Mouth Beach near Cofee Bay ended in tragedy for 20-year old British national Rachel James. She was suddenly swept away by strong currents and drowned before rescuers could save her.
20/11/2002 - An American tourist who disappeared while swimming in the sea at Coffee Bay on the Eastern coast on Monday was presumed drowned by police late on Tuesday.
25/9/2002 - Drowned British missionary to be honored. He drowned while swimming when suddenly swept out to sea by a strong current at Umtata mouth beach near Coffee Bay in July.
28/11/2010 - East London volunteers, a helicopter, Metro EMS and the SA Police Service were called out following an eye-witness report of 3 people being swept out to sea at Coffee Bay. Two women, aged approximately 17 and 18 and a boy of about 12, were rescued by an unidentified surfer and a swimmer. (source: http://www.nsri.org.za/2010/11/weekend-rescues/)
Two young British charity volunteers drown in South Africa during 'celebration swim'.(4/12/2014)
Two charity volunteers drowned after being caught in a powerful riptide off Woody Cape, near Port Elizabeth, South Africa. They had gone for an evening swim at a remote camping resort with three other friends. They got into trouble just 300 feet from the beach because high spring tides had created stronger than normal rip tides, strong currents of water, which pulled them out to sea.
The NSRI has urged the public to be extremely cautious about swimming near Woody Cape during the next week because of strong spring tides. The spokesman added: "Spring tide peaks with the full moon on Saturday December 6, bringing higher than normal high tides, lower than normal low tides and hence stronger than normal rip-currents. As a result of the spring tide the coastline is at its most dangerous during this period because of these stronger than normal rip-currents."
Safe Coastal Tourism regrets having to read this news as circumstances are so similar to the circumstances of the incident in which Bavo Verheyden drowned in 2011.
Boy drowns in East London beach. (17/12/2014)
A boy drowned (8) and another (13) was rescued at Eastern Beach in East London.
A 20 year old male from Gauteng drowned at Main Beach in Jeffreys Bay. (16/12/2014)
The man went swimming at 6:30 pm, and swam in a zone where there are strong rip currents at present. The Kouga Municipal lifeguards only patrolled the beach until 6 pm. A surfer had tried to go to the man’s assistance but he disappeared under the water and was not seen again.
Man drowns as large wave hits Durban beach. (26/12/2014)
A man drowned when an unusually large wave hit a Durban beach in South Africa. Another 40 swimmers were treated for minor injuries when the big wave hit the popular Wedge Beach on the north coast of Durban, a city on the east coast of South Africa.
One bather drowns, two saved at Beachview. (5/1/2014)
The whole article can be read in the attached document.
One person drowned and two others were rescued after they were caught in a rip current while swimming at the Beachview Resort in Port Elizabeth yesterday afternoon. Two men and a woman, all in their 20s, had gone swimming despite the beaches being closed due to bad conditions, coastal Water Rescue operations coordinator Wayne de Lange said.
Again, notice that it was full moon spring tide, which causes stronger than normal rip currents around the coast.
Man drowns on Port Elizabeth beach. (8/1/2014)
A man drowned at a beach in Port Elizabeth on Thursday afternoon. Reports from the scene are that the man was swimming in the rough sea by the dolloses near the lighthouse at the Burmar Road intersection when he ran into difficulty, Netcare 911 paramedics and the National Sea Rescue Institute responded to the scene and when they arrived they were faced with rough seas and a gale force wind. The drowning happened around 15:30.
Dutch tourist drowns at Cape St Francis (15/1/2015)
A Dutch tourist (65) has drowned after being caught in rip currents at Cape St Francis at around 17:30. Her friend, a female Dutch tourist (58) was also swept out to sea by rip currents, but was rescued by a bystander and brought to shore.
A tourist, originally from Zimbabwe and settled in England, drowned at Willard Beach, Ballito (4/2/2015)
Donald Choga, and his wife of four months Mirka, went swimming at Willard Beach on their first day in Ballito. They were seen wading in the shore break at about 4.10 pm when they got into trouble and the tide swept Donald towards backline. The lifeguards are only on duty until 4 pm.
Five people drown in two months at Coffee Bay. (6/12/2014)
... meaning Coffee Bay is not that safe for swimming as it pretends to be:
The village of Coffee Bay, just 8 km down the road from the Hole, is real beachcomber country with rustic lodges and bars, gorgeous swimming beaches, excellent fishing and breathtaking hikes.
...Not only is the kilometer-long beach safe for swimming, but the area off the bay’s southern point offers one of the few consistent surfing waves on the Wild Coast.
Add these incidents to the following list, and I wonder how many more drowning incidents are needed before any action is taken by local touristic sector.
1/4/2002 - A visit by a Mpumalanga couple to the Eastern Cape ended tragically when a 27-year-old woman drowned in Coffee Bay on Saturday, police said. Peatro Hendrika van der Berg, from Belfast, was standing on the rocks fishing with her husband Leon and a friend when strong waves swept them into the sea. Police said Leon and the friend managed to swim to safety. They tried to rescue Peatro, but were unsuccessful. Local lifesaver Johny Lange was contacted to assist, but Peatro was found dead on the rocks.
15/7/2002 - a Friday afternoon of playing and splashing by the rocks at Umtata Mouth Beach near Cofee Bay ended in tragedy for 20-year old British national Rachel James. She was suddenly swept away by strong currents and drowned before rescuers could save her.
20/11/2002 - An American tourist who disappeared while swimming in the sea at Coffee Bay on the Eastern coast on Monday was presumed drowned by police late on Tuesday.
25/9/2002 - Drowned British missionary to be honored. He drowned while swimming when suddenly swept out to sea by a strong current at Umtata mouth beach near Coffee Bay in July.
28/11/2010 - East London volunteers, a helicopter, Metro EMS and the SA Police Service were called out following an eye-witness report of 3 people being swept out to sea at Coffee Bay. Two women, aged approximately 17 and 18 and a boy of about 12, were rescued by an unidentified surfer and a swimmer. (source: http://www.nsri.org.za/2010/11/weekend-rescues/)
Two young British charity volunteers drown in South Africa during 'celebration swim'.(4/12/2014)
Two charity volunteers drowned after being caught in a powerful riptide off Woody Cape, near Port Elizabeth, South Africa. They had gone for an evening swim at a remote camping resort with three other friends. They got into trouble just 300 feet from the beach because high spring tides had created stronger than normal rip tides, strong currents of water, which pulled them out to sea.
The NSRI has urged the public to be extremely cautious about swimming near Woody Cape during the next week because of strong spring tides. The spokesman added: "Spring tide peaks with the full moon on Saturday December 6, bringing higher than normal high tides, lower than normal low tides and hence stronger than normal rip-currents. As a result of the spring tide the coastline is at its most dangerous during this period because of these stronger than normal rip-currents."
Safe Coastal Tourism regrets having to read this news as circumstances are so similar to the circumstances of the incident in which Bavo Verheyden drowned in 2011.
Boy drowns in East London beach. (17/12/2014)
A boy drowned (8) and another (13) was rescued at Eastern Beach in East London.
A 20 year old male from Gauteng drowned at Main Beach in Jeffreys Bay. (16/12/2014)
The man went swimming at 6:30 pm, and swam in a zone where there are strong rip currents at present. The Kouga Municipal lifeguards only patrolled the beach until 6 pm. A surfer had tried to go to the man’s assistance but he disappeared under the water and was not seen again.
Man drowns as large wave hits Durban beach. (26/12/2014)
A man drowned when an unusually large wave hit a Durban beach in South Africa. Another 40 swimmers were treated for minor injuries when the big wave hit the popular Wedge Beach on the north coast of Durban, a city on the east coast of South Africa.
One bather drowns, two saved at Beachview. (5/1/2014)
The whole article can be read in the attached document.
One person drowned and two others were rescued after they were caught in a rip current while swimming at the Beachview Resort in Port Elizabeth yesterday afternoon. Two men and a woman, all in their 20s, had gone swimming despite the beaches being closed due to bad conditions, coastal Water Rescue operations coordinator Wayne de Lange said.
Again, notice that it was full moon spring tide, which causes stronger than normal rip currents around the coast.
Man drowns on Port Elizabeth beach. (8/1/2014)
A man drowned at a beach in Port Elizabeth on Thursday afternoon. Reports from the scene are that the man was swimming in the rough sea by the dolloses near the lighthouse at the Burmar Road intersection when he ran into difficulty, Netcare 911 paramedics and the National Sea Rescue Institute responded to the scene and when they arrived they were faced with rough seas and a gale force wind. The drowning happened around 15:30.
Dutch tourist drowns at Cape St Francis (15/1/2015)
A Dutch tourist (65) has drowned after being caught in rip currents at Cape St Francis at around 17:30. Her friend, a female Dutch tourist (58) was also swept out to sea by rip currents, but was rescued by a bystander and brought to shore.
A tourist, originally from Zimbabwe and settled in England, drowned at Willard Beach, Ballito (4/2/2015)
Donald Choga, and his wife of four months Mirka, went swimming at Willard Beach on their first day in Ballito. They were seen wading in the shore break at about 4.10 pm when they got into trouble and the tide swept Donald towards backline. The lifeguards are only on duty until 4 pm.