EThekwini municipality rescue team assists in search for drowned bathers at Pennington beach
An eThekwini search and rescue team boat searching for the drowned bathers at Pennington beach on Sunday.
Image: Suplied
An eThekwini municipality search and rescue team has joined the Umdoni Local Municipality teams as the search for three drowned bathers continues.
The help from eThekwini was confirmed by Umdoni Local Municipality mayor Mbali Cele-Luthuli on Sunday - Luthuli said eThekwini mayor Cyril Xaba reached out to her and offered to assist with his team to help find three people who are still missing.
She said in total there were seven people were swept away by a rip current while they swam at Pennington beach on the New Year’s Day, three were found dead while one was rescued.
“We are grateful for the support we are getting from our neighbouring municipalities such as eThekwini. I must also indicate that the Ray Nkonyeni Local Municipality on the lower south coast has also sent its teams. We are continuing with our search today and we hope with the assistance of teams from eThekwini and Ray Nkonyeni municipalities we will find the remaining missing people,” said Cele-Luthuli.
Families of the missing bathers gather outside Pennington as the search continued for their loved ones.
Image: Supplied
She said that of the three bodies that had been found, two swimmers are from New Germany, west of Durban while one is from Malangeni village which falls under her municipality.
Police have opened three inquest dockets following the incident.
The National Sea Rescue Institute's spokesperson Craig Lambinon said his team was alerted on Thursday afternoon about the drowning by local lifeguards and they immediately started the search.
“The initial incident saw a large group of people caught in rip currents near the tidal pool at approximately 6.20pm. The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Station 39 Rocky Bay, along with Police Search and Rescue, Umdoni lifeguards, and IPSS medical rescue, responded to the alarm,” said Lambinon.
He said after the search, a 21-year-old man was declared deceased on the scene by paramedics, however, the tragedy deepened later that night when, at approximately 9.30pm police recovered the body of a second man, also aged 21, nearby on the beach. The third victim, an 18-year-old woman, was found on Friday.
willem.phungula@inl.co.za