GEORGE NEWS - After four children were lucky to be saved from the water by two lifeguards who happened to be at Herold's Bay last Sunday, George Municipality intends having lifeguards on the beach this coming weekend.

According to senior communications officer Ntobeko Mangqwengqwe, the municipality is engaging with the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) for lifeguard coverage over this coming weekend, the last in the October holidays. 

Typically the municipality only has lifeguards on the beaches during peak season, which starts on 1 December. 

Regarding this coming weekend, Mangqwengqwe said the municipality will also ensure that there is law enforcement and traffic presence. "Beachgoers are reminded that no alcohol is permitted on any of the beaches," he said.

Two of the children who were rescued are younger kids and two are matriculants at Outeniqua High.

A very concerned parent of a matriculant, who was part of the group of friends at the beach, asked that the authorities see to it that lifeguards are on duty during all school holidays and weekends throughout the year. 

"There should also be more of the lifebuoys available every 20 meters on the beach, as well as a floating rope behind the waves, like the shark nets that floats with balls, with two ropes in the direction of the beach," said Sansonette Fourie.

 "If someone is pulled in by the current, the person can hold on to the rope and just hang on there to rest until the lifeguards can get to them, or move to one of the two ropes leading back to the beach and pull themselves to safety." Fourie suggests crowd funding for the implementation of anti-drowning measures.

Rescue operation

According to Fourie, the two matriculants went into the sea to help the two smaller children. "They then too got into trouble," she said.

"Another friend, also in Grade 12 in Outeniqua High, called on his girlfriend who is a lifeguard and who spent the day with him on the beach, to come and help. Apparently she went in with another, older lifeguard who happened to be there. 

They could help the two smaller children and one of the Grade 12 boys.

"Yet another friend went in with his bodyboard and fins - he paddled out about 150m to reach the other Grade 12 boy who had already disappeared under water. He managed to find him, put him on his board and started to swim back with him. The two lifeguards joined him and helped to save the boy. 

"On the beach the lifeguards applied CPR and the boy vomited three times. The boy was put on a drip and received an oxygen mask, and was taken to George Hospital by ambulance where he received treatment. He was discharged on Monday. The other Grade 12 boy, who also had to be rescued, was in the hospital at the same time."

Mike Vonk, NSRI Wilderness station commander:

At 16:37, Sunday 2 October, NSRI Wilderness duty crew were activated following multiple eye-witness reports of two swimmers, male children, caught in rip currents at Herold’s Bay and additional swimmers reportedly in the water attempting to assist.

NSRI rescue swimmers, NSRI medics and WC Government Health EMS responded directly to Herold’s Bay.

At Herold’s Bay, NSRI crew prepared V’s rescuer, stationed at the community-donated satellite station, ready to be launched if needed. Additional NSRI crew responded to our NSRI rescue station and dispatched our NSRI rescue vehicle towing a second NSRI rescue craft to Herold’s Bay.

On arrival at the scene, eye-witnesses confirmed that multiple swimmers, including the two children who were originally caught in rip currents and at least six or seven bystanders, including off-duty lifeguards who had assisted in the rescue, were all safely out of the water.
NSRI medics, assisted by a doctor who happened to be on the beach, provided medical attention to the casualties until EMS paramedics took over care.

A male teenager (18) was transported to hospital by EMS ambulance in a stable condition and was discharged from hospital later that evening. A male teenager (18) was taken to hospital by private transport and he was released from hospital later.

It appears that two male children, believed to be aged 12, were signalling for help while being swept out to sea in rip currents at the middle of Herold’s Bay Beach.

Four members of the public had launched into the water to assist and two of them had retreated out of the water safely, while two of them had been swept by rip currents past the two children casualties, and they both appeared to be in difficulty themselves.

Dale Irvin, from Cape Town, whose family has sponsored the NSRI jet-rib “V's Rescuer”, despite wearing a brace for a healing ankle injury, had grabbed an NSRI pink rescue buoy and a member of the public’s bodyboard and had launched into the water to assist the casualties.

He had passed the pink rescue buoy over to an off-duty female lifeguard (Abi Olivier aged 17), who was also entering the water to assist. Another off-duty lifeguard, Abré Pio (26), also launched into the water to assist and he took over Abi's pink rescue buoy.

Dale reached one of the casualties (one of the Good Samaritans aged 18 - who had tried to help the two children). Abré placed that casualty on the bodyboard and he was swimming him to shore where Abi and other members of the public members had waded into the water to help to bring that man out the water.

Meanwhile lifeguard Abré, swimming with the pink rescue buoy, had reached the second casualty (one of the Good Samaritans, aged 18 - he was one of the members of the public who had attempted to reach the two children), who was further out to sea. This teenager was barely conscious.

Using the pink rescue buoy, Abré initiated rescuing that casualty to the shore. A 16-year-old bodyboarder (Hugo Naudé) and another off-duty lifeguard from Mossel Bay, who had also responded, together assisted Abré to recover that teenager to the beach where members of the public and the doctor assisted with medical treatment.

After rescuing his casualty to the shoreline, Dale had then returned into the surf armed with the bodyboard and assisted one the children safely back to shore. The child casualty required no medical treatment.

The other child had also managed to get safely out of the water. We believe he was assisted by a 14-year-old female (Jessica) and she had used an NSRI pink rescue buoy to assist that casualty.

NSRI commends everyone involved in this incident. Together these off-duty lifeguards and Good Samaritans contributed to lives being saved.

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