Missing doctor’s fateful ‘last moments’ captured on camera
Doctor Vidwaan Singh, the Pietermaritzburg doctor who has been missing since Tuesday, was last seen on camera footage walking to the old zipline platform at the top of Howick Falls.
Doctor Vidwaan Singh.
Local newspaper Public Eye has traced the doctor’s apparently fateful final moments by interviewing people in the Falls’ precinct, revealing the time he spent at the iconic Falls Restaurant writing what appeared to be a note.
A two-day exhaustive search by numerous search and rescue units, police, sniffer dogs, three dive teams, as well as various other professional personnel was called off on Thursday night when no trace of the missing 72-year-old was found.
ALSO READ: Divers brave hypothermia at Howick Falls in search for missing KZN doctor
He had left his Raisethorpe surgery just before midday on Tuesday, and the alarm was raised after he failed to return home.
SNIPR cameras caught him driving his white BMW into Howick at 11.55am and, five minutes later, after he must have parked in the falls precinct, he was captured by four cameras at the Falls Lounge restaurant walking to the view-site. He hung around there for a while and went back to his car, which was apparently parked out of sight of the cameras.
It is speculated that he took that time to write letters, which were later found in the car.
At 12.55pm he was clearly seen by the restaurant’s cameras walking past the view-site, towards the old zipline platform at the top of the cliff overlooking the plunge pool at the bottom of the falls.
Close inspection of the rickety wooden platform, which has long been out of commission since it collapsed, show several muddy scuff marks and a couple of scratches. Speculation is that the doctor might have stood there for a while. There is the possibility he may have slipped off the structure.
While divers combed the water below for most of the day on Thursday in freezing conditions, going down some 12 metres of the 21m deep area, no trace of him could be found. The water is apparently extremely murky, and visibility bad.
Divers and rescuers at the falls pool on Wednesday afternoon.
His brother-in-law Neren Anand said that the family was remaining hopeful for Singh’s return.
“We are extremely thankful for all the support that we have been receiving from Howick, Pietermaritzburg and the teams that have been working around the clock to find him. For the moment we want to remain hopeful for him,” said Anand.
Authorities were continuing to check the falls and surrounding area.
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