IN the final week of January and first weekend of February, Lifesaving South Africa received reports of five drownings along the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal.

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First, there was a report of a 24-year-old man who drowned at Scottburgh after lifeguard duty hours. Following that, an adult female drowned in a remote stretch of beach between Pipeline and Amanzimtoti Main Beach, on February 1.

On the same day, reports were received of a family tragedy in Hibberdene when a 13-year-old boy was swept out to sea in a rip current. Attempts to rescue the child resulted in one of his uncles also drowning in the powerful rip current. The body of his uncle washed ashore soon after the incident, while the search for the boy’s body is ongoing.

President of Lifesaving South Africa, Dhaya Sewduth, said, “In all the cases at Amanzimtoti, Hibberdene and Umzumbe, the drowned individuals were swimming or entered the ocean at non-bathing beaches where lifeguards do not patrol. Bathers are urged to not swim at beaches which are designated as non-bathing beaches. They should look out for lifesavers and the red and yellow bathing flag,s and if none are visible they must not swim at that beach. The South African coastline is notorious for rip currents and not all beaches are patrolled by lifeguards.”

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