Joey Potgieter has been in the police service for 28 years, and a police diver for seven years.

She joined the police after school, and started diving as there were very few divers at that stage. “I have always wanted to dive, and was diving in my private capacity, and them made my sport my job. I am a class four commercial diver, and the Ehlanzeni dive-point commander.

I attend all water-related incidents in the province with the other members of the diving unit. It is important, as we recover the bodies of people who died in the water, and make sure that their families can get closure.

She adds that the most fulfilling part of her job is to see the families getting closure, and that they can bury their loved ones and move on. “I do not leave a scene before the body is recovered,” says Potgieter.

“Woman definitely have a place in SAPS and in the diving unit. You need skill, not brawn, to do this type of work.”

Her message to women is to try something new and exciting. “Life is short, so try everything at least once.”

Also read: Wondrous women of White River: Loretta Coetzee