A mother’s instinct

A brave mother from Ballito said she did what any other mother would have done when she rescued her seven-year-old son from drowning at Boulder Bay, Ballito on Tuesday, June 16.

“I used to be a swimmer in school and I have been attending Bob’s Boot Camp while training for the warrior race,” said Bronwyn Herselman, who said she was grateful for her fitness level at the time.

The Herselman family made the most of the blissfully warm winter weather by spending Youth Day morning on the beach.

Sameul Herselman and his friends were swimming in a rock pool while his parents kept an eye on them from the beach.

There were some nice waves breaking on the rocks, keeping the rock pool full, but nothing too big.

Herselman had turned her back briefly at around 11am to talk to a friend when Samuel was washed out of the pool and into trouble.

In the blink of an eye, Bronwyn powered her way through the water to her son.

“Samuel was able to stay calm and keep his head above the water until I got to him.”

She attempted to return the way they had come but the current was too strong.

“I remembered an article I read on how to survive Ballito’s rip currents and decided to work with the current and go around the rock pool.”

With wave after wave crashing on the rocks, Bronwyn put herself in between her son and the rocks to shield him from the sharp edges.

“I pushed my knee into the rocks and held on with everything in me while protecting my son.”

Bronwyn could feel her flesh getting cut by barnicles and mussel shells, but all she cared about was getting her son to safety.

In the mean time a spear fisherman came to their rescue.

He took Sameul and with his extra long spear fishing fins, he managed to get Samuel to safety.

This freed up Bronwyn to climb up onto the rocks and walk back to the beach.

Bronwyn was cut quite badly but had her wounds cleaned at home with Dettol, rather than go to a doctor. By late afternoon she started shivering and her temperature rocketed to 38.1 degrees Celcius.

She went to Alberlito Hospital where the doctors quickly realised that she had picked up a bacterial infection from the cuts.

“I just did what any mother would have done,” said Bronwyn.