A man, suspected to be a copper cable thief, drowned near Mbombela in Mpumalanga recently.

It took the Ehlanzeni Diving Unit six hours to recover the body of a man in the gorge between KaNyamazane and Matsulu.

According to Captain Pottie Potgieter of the unit, the man had various pieces of equipment with him, leading them to suspect he might have been on his way to steal copper cables.

Potgieter explained there are small ladders in the gorge among the rocks that people use to cross the Crocodile River. One of these ladders had broken, leading to the man’s drowning.

The diving unit was alerted to the body after a Fidelity helicopter had spotted him late on Monday afternoon during a patrol of the area. This according to Fidelity’s specialised intervention unit manager, Shaun Terblanche.

Potgieter thanked the members of Search and Rescue South Africa Lowveld for their assistance.

The Matsulu SAPS as well as provincial emergency services were also on the scene.

According to Potgieter, the body recovery was a team effort. He said without the involved parties, it would not have been possible.