Nahoon drowning: partygoers urged to avoid dawn sea swims

BCM on Monday recorded its first drowning since the festive season began on December 1.

The drowning, which took place at Nahoon Beach in the early hours on Monday, takes the tally of those who drowned or died on BCM beaches to 11 since the beginning of September.

The 23-year-old Komani woman's death was confirmed on Monday by BCM spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya, who urged beachgoers not to swim when there were no lifeguards on duty.

“If people swim outside the lifeguards' operating hours, they are taking a huge risk, which could result in drowning.

“We really urge people to refrain from taking these spontaneous decisions to swim at night as they have proven very costly.

National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) CEO Dr Cleeve Robertson said they were called out to Nahoon at 4.45am. They were later joined by the police dive unit, K9 search and rescue unit and BCM lifeguards.

The woman from Komani “had been caught by a heavy rip current while swimming with a group of others. Unfortunately she was already deceased when we arrived and now an inquest docket has been opened by police,” Robertson said.

They were led to understand that “a group of friends went out the night before and in the morning they decided to go out for a swim. Unfortunately this incident happened.”

In the Mbhashe area — home to the beautiful Dwesa and Cwebe nature reserves — beaches remain without lifeguards over the festive season amid a payment standoff between the municipality and the guards.

The strike started on 13 December and is still in place. On Christmas Day thousands of people are expected to flock to Mbhashe's 10 beaches.

Mbhashe's 30 lifeguards are holding out for an increase in their daily stipend from R150 to R220 a day, or R45 an hour.

Mzwandile Gongotho, chair of the Mbhashe Surf Lifesaving Club, said: “None of the Mbhashe beaches has had a lifeguard on site since the festive began and we are worried that, as traffic increases to our beaches, anything can happen."

Gongotho said the talks had deadlocked.

He said contracts had been taken to Xhora ( Elliotdale) by authorities, who said any lifeguard interested in taking up the R150 offer should sign.  “Not one of the 30 guards signed. We do not see any immediate solution as our municipality is refusing to budge.”

Attempts to get comment from Mbhashe spokesperson Ncebakazi Kolwane were unsuccessful at the time of writing. She failed to respond to e-mail questions by the time of writing.