GEORGE NEWS - Several pink NSRI rescue buoys were stolen from their poles in the Garden Route during the holiday season.
Wilderness NSRI station commander Mike Vonk said the pink buoys are NSRI-owned public rescue equipment sponsored by individuals and businesses to save lives.
“Removing a pink buoy from a pole for reasons other than a rescue may cost somebody their life,” he said.
“We are appealing to anyone who finds a pink buoy to either let us know where it is by calling the telephone number embossed on the pink buoy or to take it and hang it on the closest pink buoy pole. Even if there is already one, our volunteers will find it and take it where it is needed,” said Vonk.
Background to the NSRI’s pink rescue buoy programme
The NSRI’s pink rescue buoys are placed at selected beaches along the South African coastline and some inland dams and rivers.
The roll-out of the NSRI pink rescue buoys started in November 2017. This project is made possible by corporate and public sponsorship of R1 500 per buoy, which covers the cost of the buoy, the sign, and the pole that holds it.
The project is part of an extensive national drowning prevention campaign started by the NSRI in 2017. Deploying the buoys is done with the cooperation of city councils, municipalities and communities in a rapidly growing effort to prevent drowning incidents.
The rescue buoys are bright pink so that responding rescuers can easily spot them on the water. They are unique to NSRI, so if you see a pink rescue buoy that is not on its pole, it has probably been stolen. Please encourage the person who has it to return it to the pole that they removed it from.
Each buoy sign contains emergency numbers for Sea Rescue. There is also a location number on each sign. When calling the NSRI for help, people have to tell them what this location number is so that they know exactly where the emergency is and can get rescuers there faster.
If you are not a strong swimmer, it is advised that the buoy be thrown to a person in danger of drowning while someone calls for help.
Even if you are a strong swimmer, only go into the water to try and help someone if you have some form of flotation for yourself and the person you are going to help. This is what the pink rescue buoy is for. A surfboard is another good example.
The buoys belong to Sea Rescue and should be returned to their post after use so that they can be used to save another life.
Over 1 700 pink rescue buoys have been installed around South Africa and since November 2017, 176 people that we know of have been rescued using a pink buoy.
For more information on this project or to sponsor a pink rescue buoy, you are welcome to contact the NSRI at pinkrescuebuoys@searescue.org.za or WhatsApp 079 802 6773.
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