Body of man recovered from north river after car swept away

The body of a 44-year-old man has been recovered from Haartbeespruit river after his car was swept away in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Early on Sunday morning, divers and various emergency teams launched a search after receiving reports that a car was swept into a river near the Seekoei Road in Roodeplaat.

ALSO READ: Search on after car swept by water into North river

Saturday saw heavy winds and rain affecting many parts of Gauteng including Pretoria.

Some low lying bridges in the capital were flooded as a result. Reports of the car having been swept away were received after midnight and authorities could not go into the water due to the rainy weather.

“The Tshwane Emergency Services Department received a call before midnight on 04 December 2021 where it was reported that a light motor vehicle was swept off a low crossing bridge near Hangelaar and Seekoei Rood in the Roodeplaat area, with victims possibly trapped inside the vehicle, ” Tshwane emergency service’s Charles Mabaso said.

” Emergency response teams were immediately dispatched to the area, where upon arrival at the incident, what seemed like a motor vehicle was noticed submerged from the water, about a kilometre away from where the vehicle was last seen. Emergency teams could not enter the water to carry out a search because of the high level and speed of the water as well as poor visibility because of the time of the night and the rainfall.”

As the search kick-started at 06:00 on Sunday morning, a “croc” boat and divers launched into the spruit, and body of a man was recovered from inside the vehicle, which was mostly still intact.

The man was found at the back of his vehicle, which seemed like he had attempted to escape.

“The team used winches from service 4×4 vehicles and a towing vehicle to recover the car from the spruit,” Mabaso said.

It is believed the man may have been trying to cross a flooded low-lying bridge when the water swept his vehicle into the river.

The man, who is believed to live at a nearby plot in the area, was certified dead on the scene.

Members of his family, who had reported him missing when he did not return home, have been notified.

The police Kameeldrift police have opened an inquest docet and the body was taken to the government mortuary.

Mabaso shared the following safety tips on floods :
• Avoid low-lying bridges during a flood
• If trapped in a vehicle during a flood, abandon the vehicle and climb to high ground
• Do not drive on a road if it is completely covered by water and you cannot see the
road surface (you do not know how deep it is or if the road is washed away)
• Be especially cautious at night when it is harder to recognise flood dangers

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