Two men drowned near Mnandi Beach in False Bay on Sunday 20 September, and in a separate incident on the same day a swimmer caught in a rip current at Monwabisi was rescued.

National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Strandfontein station commander Nicolette Whitehead said the duty crew was activated at 16:40 after reports from the City of Cape Town Law Enforcement Marine Unit and multiple eyewitnesses of drownings in progress at S-Bend, near Mnandi Beach, False Bay.

NSRI rescue swimmers, the NSRI rescue vehicle, the South African Police Service, Cape Town Disaster Risk Management, Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service, Western Cape Government Health Emergency Medical Services, City of Cape Town Law Enforcement and its marine unit, and Life Healthcare response paramedics all responded.

The NSRI rescue craft Rotarian Wares, which was on the water nearby at the time, was diverted to the scene.

Two men dead near Mnandi Beach

On arrival, NSRI crew found two casualties out of the water on the beach and began cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) efforts on both men. They were joined by Law Enforcement, rescue services, paramedics and police.

Despite extensive efforts both men were declared dead by paramedics.

It appears a group of locals were swimming together in shallow surf when members of the group discovered two men from their group face down in the water. They were recovered to the shore and the alarm was raised.

The bodies of the two men, a 37-year-old from Nyanga and a 42-year-old from Philippi, were taken into the care of police and Government Health Forensic Pathology Services.

Condolences were conveyed to the families of the two men.

Police have opened an inquest docket.

Swimmer rescued at Monwabisi

In a separate incident NSRI Strandfontein crew noticed a man caught in a rip current while swimming at Monwabisi at 13:30 on Sunday 20 September.

The crew had been conducting routine equipment inspections at the NSRI auxiliary satellite station at Monwabisi at the time.

Two NSRI rescue swimmers — one from NSRI Strandfontein and one from NSRI Mdumbi, who was visiting from Coffee Bay in the Eastern Cape — launched into the surf. One was armed with an NSRI pink rescue buoy.

They reached the man in the surf zone and, despite extremely strong rip currents, rescued him safely to the shoreline.

The man, from Delft, was medically assessed by NSRI medics and was not injured. He required no further assistance.

NSRI commended the vigilance and swift response of the two rescue swimmers, saying their efforts contributed to the man’s life being saved.

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