Search launched after elderly British citizen goes missing in KZN
Micheal John McCullagh suffers from Parkinson’s disease, and is diabetic.
Rusa is searching for 75-year-old British national Micheal John McCullagh. Photo: Rusa
Reaction Unit South Africa (Rusa) is seeking public assistance in locating a 75-year-old British citizen who has been missing since early on Sunday morning in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.
According to a statement released by Rusa, Micheal John McCullagh arrived on a local flight around midnight at King Shaka International Airport after spending a few days in Johannesburg.
He reportedly hired a grey Suzuki Swift from Avis Car Rental with a registration number JV61ZPGP and headed towards Durban North.
The rental car company informed Rusa the car was not installed with a tracking device. Camera footage captured the Suzuki in the Gateway Shopping Centre in Umhlanga around 2am on Sunday.
The missing man is said to be suffering from Parkinson’s disease, a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement, often including tremors. McCullagh is also diabetic.
The report said McCullagh’s last contact was telephonically around 9am on Sunday, when he called a tow truck driver to say he was stuck in a sugar cane in an unknown place after he took a wrong turn trying to swerve in the heavy rain.
He reportedly requested they bring him a diet Coke when they come to his rescue. It is not known if the tow truck driver reached McCullagh.
Reaction officers and paramedics are conducting a search for the missing man, as they believe his health might have rapidly deteriorated.
If anyone has information about McCullagh, or may have spotted the grey Suzuki, they are urged to contact Rusa on 086 123 4333.
Body of missing Hartbeespoort Dam man found
The search for a man who went missing after plunging into the Hartbeespoort Dam on Saturday has been called off.
The body of 36-year-old Robert Ganyani Bila was found on Tuesday morning, Kormorant reports.
His car was found partially submerged in dense water hyacinth on Saturday night.
The National Sea Rescue Institute, rescue swimmers and the police’s diving unit responded to the scene, where a suspected accident saw the car plunge into the dam at the Randburg Bridge.
After investigating the car, no occupants were found.
His car was found in dense hyacinth overgrowth in the dam, and has since been recovered by a towing company.
An inquest has been opened, and investigations into his death continue.
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