Young man drowns at Kidd’s Beach
Latest incident brings total number of BCM drownings to eight
A 23-year-old man drowned at Kidd’s Beach on Christmas Day while swimming with friends.
East London police spokesperson captain Hazel Mqala said the incident took place at 5pm.
Mqala said the man was spotted by community members sticking his hands up in the air while being swept away by a strong rip current.
“He got into difficulty in the water and someone went in to rescue him,” said the police spokesperson.
“The paramedics arrived and declared him dead. The police have opened an inquest docket.”
National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) East London station commander Geoff McGregor said the institute, South African Police Service K9 Unit and SAPS divers responded to the scene and when they got there, the body had been pulled out of the water.
McGregor said the latest drowning brings the total number of people who drowned off beaches in the BCM region to eight since December 1.
McGregor said a woman was rushed to hospital after nearly drowning at Bonza Bay beach on Saturday, December 15.
Meanwhile the police have confirmed that they have found the body of one of two college students who drowned at Eastern Beach on Thursday, December 6.
He was found washed up near the lifeguard’s shack on December 13, more than a week after the drowning.
Mqala said the man’s body was bloated and decomposed and his dreadlocks had fallen off.
The students were believed to have drowned at the East London’s beach at a time when no lifeguards were on duty.
It seems the second student drowned while trying to rescue the first one.
Buffalo City Metro spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya at the time blamed striking municipal workers for allegedly chasing away lifeguards, although the South African Municipal Workers Union campaigns convener Zola Capucapu has denied Ngwenya’s allegations.
The lifeguards have since reported for duty with a backing of more than 40 seasonal lifeguards roped in by the BCM for the busy Christmas season.
The South African Police Service has announced a zero tolerance approach on bathers who drink on the beaches and then swim while inebriated. Mqala said alcohol consumption had been a major contributing factor in recent drownings...
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