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Search for missing South Africans enters day four

There is still no sign of the four young people who went missing off the coast of Mozambique on Monday.

January 17, 2019

Jana Boshoff 2 minutes read

The four were part of a group of eight people who were on holiday in Mozambique. They visited the Portuguese Island by boat on Monday and went swimming.

According to a person who was on the island when the swimmers went missing two women of the group decided not to swim because they felt uncomfortable in the water.

Also read: Search still on for South Africans missing in Mozambique

Two men managed to swim back to shore without any problems leaving four people, two couples, in the water. From the time that they reached the beach and their towels and turned around to look at their friends, only one woman was visible.
She was frantically waving her arms at them.

Two women ran to where the boat that brought them to the island was, and the boat was in the water searching for the swimmers at little more than 10 minutes later.

Also read: VIDEO: Search for missing four in Mozambique hindered by stormy weather

Two boats searched for the swimmers until nightfall with more boats and a helicopter joining the search the next day. The search was hindered on day three of the search. Three boats have taken to the water again on Thursday for the fourth day of looking for the missing group of swimmers.

• Sara Currie Millar from DriveMoz said on their Facebook group that the people are still missing. She said that the four young people have made statements with the police and that some of them will be returning to South Africa whilst others will be staying behind. She was full of praise for people who offered their support in the form of accommodation, fuel, advice and counsel, and specially mentioned the Mozambican authorities and Maputo residents.

Also read: Four young people from Groblersdal missing in Mozambique

• A boat captain who does charters said that he brings around 1 000 people to the island per year and that there has never been an incident before now.

• Another Mozambican resident said that he has offered to sponsor a sign to be erected at the area where the swimmers went missing, to warn swimmers in future of the dangerous currents at that particular spot.