American national dies in boating accident at Hazelmere Dam
After falling off the front of the boat, the man collided with the boat propeller.
Just days before he was set to head back to the USA, a 28-year-old American died after falling overboard at Hazelmere Dam.
The man’s name is currently being withheld at the request of the American consulate so that his family members can be informed.
He had been in South Africa on a diving course for the past 2 months and was due to fly back home on September 1.
The man was out boating at the dam with 2 friends when the accident happened.
According to the friends, he was sitting on the front of the boat, but fell off and did not resurface, said IPSS Medical Rescue spokesperson, Paul Herbst.
“The skipper of the boat reported that after the man fell off the boat, he heard a knocking noise. When the body was recovered, there was a head wound consistent with an impact to the propeller of the boat,” he said.
The friends attempted to turn the boat around and search for the victim, but were unable to find him.
He was not wearing a lifejacket.
Search and rescue teams from Pietermaritzburg and Durban arrived on scene on Sunday afternoon but were unable to locate the body before the search had to be called off for poor light.
The body was recovered on Monday.
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