NSRI
Why is it that some individuals simply cannot keep their hands off the Pink Rescue Buoys used by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) as a life saving floating device?
Consuming too many adult beverages, acting on a dare or just being disrespectful is probably used as an excuse for this not so petty crime.
In the latest incident, unknown thieves made a beeline for the devices stationed at Bonza Bay in East London and the Kobb Inn Beach Resort.
NSRI drowning prevention manager, Andrew Ingram, says both these buoys were removed after 5 pm on Monday when the lifeguards were off duty.
He says those who removed them should return them urgently.
Algoa FM News approached the NSRI to ask why theft cases are not opened against the perpetrators to bring them to book.
Ingram says SAPS are under enough pressure and since they often have no idea who stole the devices, which cost only R300, they will much rather educate communities.
He says there has been a remarkable drop in these cases already as they have recently started to track their devices.
"This is something that we are prioritizing in the greater East London area where we have the first Pink Buoy at Nahoon beach, being monitored. Others will follow soon," he said.
On Christmas Eve last year, the NSRI in Strand thanked a local security company who managed to find a Buoy that was stolen by youngsters on a beach at midnight.
Ingram says in this case, they retrieved CCTV footage and posted a picture of the two young men (their faces were not identifiable, but anyone who knew them would have recognised them) on social media.
He says the next day, a young man walked up to the pole, pulled the Pink Buoy out of a bag, and hung it back on its hook.
On the same day, the NSRI in Jeffreys Bay made a passionate plea to malicious holidaymakers/locals to return no less than eight buoys that disappeared in just a few days.
In 2018, four teenagers were caught on CCTV camera stealing a buoy from its post at Point Beach, Wavecrest in Jeffreys Bay.
The device was returned, with an apology, after a video released by the NSRI went viral on social media.
The NSRI Pink Rescue Buoys initiative was honoured at the International Maritime Rescue Federation conference in Norway in 2018 for Innovation and Technology and has assisted in saving the lives of over 90 people since its inception.
Should anyone spot someone removing a Pink Buoy, please email pinkrescuebuoys@searescue.org.za or send a message on the dedicated Pink Rescue Buoy WhatsApp line 0798026773.
