THE brave attempt of a young man to save his friend sadly ended in him losing his own life in a tragic drowning at Alkantstrand just after 5.30pm on Sunday.

Both were caught in rip currents at the main beach, in front of the lifeguard house, and while the initial victim (26) eventually managed to get to shore and was later taken to eNseleni Clinic for observation, his would-be rescuer disappeared under the waves.

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A search for the body of the victim (27) resumed at first light on Monday.

With early summer temperatures at close to 40° Celsius over the weekend, the beaches in Richards Bay, especially the Bay Hall area, were packed on Sunday, long after lifeguards went off duty at 5pm.

There was an earlier incident at Palm Beach just north of the main beach, when an elderly man collapsed and required urgent emergency medical management.

Reports were that the patient was a diabetic who appeared confused, dizzy and disorientated before being treated for low sugar levels and stabilised.

Lifeguards and bystanders assisted to carry the recovering patient to the awaiting MedCare 24 ambulance for transfer to Netcare The Bay Hospital.

Meanwhile, a teenager is missing, presumed drowned, off the coast of St Lucia after getting into difficulty while swimming at Jabula Beach at around 5pm on Sunday.

NSRI St Lucia duty crew responded to a call of a drowning in progress from iSimangaliso Wetland Park rangers.

“Eyewitnesses reported that the male (17), a matric pupil from KwaMsane, was last seen in the surf zone appearing to be caught in rip currents when he disappeared from view,” said NSRI St Lucia station commander Melinda Snyman.

An extensive search carried out by SAPS Search & Rescue and assisted by iSimangaliso rangers has thus far revealed no signs of the missing teenager.

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