NSRI
The National Sea Rescue Institute said a woman was rescued late on Friday night after being swept out to sea when a little boat capsized in the Swartkops River Mouth.
NSRI spokesperson, Craig Lambinon, said their Gqeberha duty crew was activated at around 8 pm following eye-witness reports of cries for help coming from the direction of the Swartkops River Mouth.
He said a number of role-players responded to the call and he said an adult male was located on one of the bridge columns and he was brought to shore aboard the Bluewater Bay lifeguards rescue craft.
“It was determined that he and an adult female had been fishing from one of the columns and while returning to shore aboard their 2.5-metre craft, with a 5 horsepower motor, had capsized in the wake of another boat,” Lambinon said.
He said the man had managed to swim to the bridge column but the female was swept out to sea.
“On the sea rescue craft JLT Rescuer arriving on the scene, a sea search commenced and during the search, the female was found at 23h12, adrift approximately 500 meters out to sea after she had been swept out of the river mouth.
“She was rescued onto the sea rescue craft and exhausted and hypothermic NSRI medics immediately commenced treatment for hypothermia. We believe that she had been in the water for over two hours,” Lambinon said.
He said the woman was taken to a hospital in a stable condition while the man was not injured.
