Kalk Bay rescue mission ends in tragedy
On Monday morning, NSRI Simons Town duty crew were activated following reports of a paddler on a surf-ski appearing to be in difficulties offshore of Kalk Bay Harbour.
Eyewitnesses reported the incident, including a Cape Town Traffic Services officer, bystanders and members of a TMNP (Table Mountain National Parks) communications group, reporting the paddler to have capsized about 150 metres offshore of the Kalk Bay Harbour wall.
NSRI Strandfontein, CMR (Cape Medical Response), the SA Police Services, WC Government Health EMS and CoCT (City of Cape Town) Law Enforcement were also activated.
NSRI Simons Town crew had been at the NSRI Simons Town station 10 rescue base at the time, conducting routine training, and immediately the NSRI Simons Town rescue craft Jack&Irene was launched while NSRI rescue swimmers responded directly to the scene.
A local fishing vessel, the Emily Marie, hearing bystanders calling out for help, had seen the paddler in the water and the skipper and crew of the Emily Marie launched their fishing vessel to assist.
A local man, age 35, a Good Samaritan, seeing the man appearing to be in difficulties at his surf-ski, had jumped off the Kalk Bay Harbour wall and he swam to the paddler in efforts to attempt to assist.
The paddler, although in the water, was gradually swimming back towards the Kalk Bay Harbour mouth using his surf-ski to aid in his floatation.
The Good Samaritan had reached the paddler but appeared then to be in difficulties himself.
At that stage the fishing vessel Emily Marie had reached the two men rescuing both men onto their fishing vessel.
A NSRI Simons Town crewman, who was at Kalk Bay at the time, had reached the Kalk Bay Habour wall and was able to relay information to the responding rescue resources.
Crew of the Emily Marie, noticing the Good Samaritan man appearing to be lifeless onboard their fishing vessel, initiated CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) efforts while heading back into Kalk Bay Harbour where NSRI crew met with them, boarded the fishing vessel, and continued with CPR efforts.
Additional rescue crew, from the NSRI rescue craft, and CMR paramedics, joined with the ongoing extensive CPR efforts.
Sadly, after all efforts to resuscitate the man were exhausted sadly he was declared deceased.
The cause of death remains unknown at the time of publishing.
Police have opened an Inquest docket.
The body of the deceased man has been taken into the care of Government Health Forensic Pathology Services.
Condolences are conveyed to the family and friends of the deceased man.
The paddler, age 57, from Green Point, was medically treated by CMR paramedics before being released requiring no further assistance. Post your condolences below, by …
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1
Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The South African
5 days ago
- The South African
Cape Town announces 14-hour power outage in these areas
The City of Cape Town electricity and generation teams will implement a 14-hour power outage to maintain essential electricity infrastructure over four weeks in Newlands. The maintenance work will be carried out from 18:00 on Saturday, 14 June, to 8:00 on Sunday, 15 June, if all goes to plan, resulting in electricity supply interruptions. The City of Cape Town said it is important to note that interruptions to the electricity supply will only impact the highlighted area on the maps and only on the relevant date. To view the area outage map, you can visit: Meanwhile, the metro municipality is set to conduct essential high-voltage infrastructure upgrades and maintenance in parts of Green Point and Muizenberg. The City of Cape Town said supply interruptions will primarily impact the area within the borders of the map, although other areas nearby may also be affected by the maintenance work, which will also result in a 14-hour power outage. To view the area outage maps, you can visit: Muizenberg Saturday, 31 May 2025 from 18:00 to Sunday, 1 June 2025 08:00. Alternatively, it will be carried out on Muizenberg Saturday, 14 June 2025 from 18:00 to Sunday, 15 June 2025 08:00 Moreover, the City of Cape Town has warned that electricity supply could be restored at any time and urged customers to treat all electrical installations as live for the full duration of the planned maintenance work. 'Residents are encouraged to switch off appliances as a precaution and to avoid damage caused by power surges when the power comes back on. 'The City of Cape Town apologises for any inconvenience caused and thanks residents for their cooperation and understanding,' the metro municipality said. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
The South African
7 days ago
- The South African
'Radio antennas, traditional beer and guns' - Cape Town repeals outdated by-laws
Some of these City by-laws have lingered on the books since the 19th century. In a landmark move, the City published the By-law on the Repeal of By-laws that were Adopted by Former Municipalities, 2025, in the Provincial Gazette on Wednesday. With this, 1 029 obsolete laws – some dating back to the 1890s – have now been scrapped. Also, some of these bylaws addressed matters that are no longer applicable, or fall outside of local government's mandate, for example radio antennas, traditional beer and guns, and firearms and explosions, the City said in a statement. 'This is the third and final by-law of its kind,' noted City Manager, Lungelo Mbandazayo. 'It took many years of thorough research to complete the investigation of all of the by-laws adopted over a period of more than 110 years by former municipalities that now make up the City of Cape Town,' Before 1996, the City of Cape Town was made up of 30 separate small municipalities. These were amalgamated into six larger municipalities – Helderberg, Tygerberg, Blaauwberg, South Peninsula, Oostenberg and the City of Cape Town. In 2000, the six municipalities were dissolved to establish the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality as it's known today. However, remnants of the fragmented system still lingered in legal form. To address this, the City began the process of repealing obsolete laws nearly two decades ago: In 2007, 514 by-laws were repealed. In 2016, another 302 were removed. Now, in 2025, the final 213 have been struck off. 'This process is now complete, and we can safely say there is not a single outdated or unconstitutional by-law left on our books,' added Mbandazayo. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The South African
04-06-2025
- The South African
Woman attacked over R350 SRD grant in KZN
A domestic dispute in Mhlasini, KwaZulu-Natal, turned violent on Tuesday 3 June after a woman admitted to spending her R350 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant on alcohol. Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA) responded to the scene after receiving reports of an assault. When officers arrived, they found that a man had confronted his partner over the money she had withdrawn earlier that day. According to RUSA, the man returned home and questioned his partner about the R350 SRD grant she had withdrawn. She told him she had spent it on alcohol. A heated argument followed. During the altercation, he allegedly assaulted her, pulled out a knife, and held it to her throat. When she tried to defend herself, she grabbed the blade and suffered a deep cut to her hand. Despite the injury, the woman declined to open a criminal case against her partner. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
