Update
GEORGE NEWS - A non-fatal drowning in Herold's Bay again highlighted the efficacy of the NSRI pink rescue buoys posted around our coastline when the buoys contributed to saving two lives on Wednesday 22 November.
The incident happened when a man from Sandton, Ntakadzeni Tharage (36) and his daughter (11), were pulled out to sea in a rip current while swimming at Herold's Bay beach.
According to NSRI Wilderness station commander Mike Vonk, their crew were activated at around 15:40 when eyewitnesses reported two people in trouble in the water.
Samaritans save lives
The rescue that followed was nothing short of a miracle, as a number of Good Samaritans who happened to be in the area that day, worked together to bring the casualties to safety.
A local surfing instructor at Vibe Surf School, Steve Steyn (19), said he and his fellow instructor and former lifeguard Corné Calitz (26), were at Dutton's Cove when they heard the news of someone in trouble in the water.
They drove down to the beach to assist where, in the meantime, a lifeguard from Hartenbos Lifesaving, Ian Barnard (18), had grabbed an NSRI pink rescue buoy and swum out to the casualties.
He handed them the buoy to stay afloat until help arrived and kept them calm. Barnard then swam back to the beach where he was handed another pink buoy and ran along the rocks to re-enter the water closer to the casualties.
"At this stage Steyn and Calitz had entered the water with their surfboards," said Vonk. They reached the casualties while Barnard was swimming towards them with the second pink bouy, while another local, Adriaan Basson, also got into the water from the rocks with a surfboard to assist the other rescuers.
Between them they quickly devised a plan to get the casualties to safety.
Basson told George Herald that initially there were three people in trouble in the water, but he and some other beachgoers managed to get out one of them, a woman, before she was swept into the ocean.
On arriving at the scene Adam Helling, an NSRI Wilderness rescue swimmer and Herold's Bay lifeguard, also launched into the water with his own torpedo rescue buoy.
As the rescuers reached the shallows, Tristan van Wyk (20) from George had also entered the water and helped get the casualties out of the water.
By this time additional NSRI rescue swimmers and emergency services were arriving on the scene.
The two casualties were medically treated on the beach for non-fatal drowning symptoms and exhaustion. They were stabilised by paramedics and transported to hospital by ER24 ambulance, with the father in a critical but stable condition.
Both were treated overnight and are expected to make a full recovery.
Bystanders attend to one of the near casualties at Herold's Bay Beach las Wednesday.
Rescue in Sedgefield
A 41-year-old man rescued a man who had disappeared under the water at the Sedgefield lagoon mouth on Sunday 26 November.
According to NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon, a 13-year-old local teenager also tried to rescue the man but retreated after he disappeared under water. The casualty was eventually brought to shore where bystanders initiated CPR until a pulse and spontaneous breathing were restored.
NSRI medics and ER24 paramedics who arrived on the scene continued with medical treatment and the man was transported to hospital by an ER24 ambulance in a critical condition.
Ian Barnard from Hartenbos Surf Lifesaving Club with Tharage in hospital. Photo: HSLC Facebook page
The pink buoy programme
The NSRI Pink Rescue Buoy programme was launched in 2017 and has contributed to saving 160 lives. Throughout the weekend, five lives were saved across the country with the use of the pink buoys.
Previous article: Three saved from drowning in Herold's Bay
Also read: Heroic community effort saves man from drowning
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