De Lille lauds Hout Bay rescuers
2012-10-14 16:15
Johannesburg - Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille on Sunday praised rescuers who had brought to safety survivors of a boating tragedy off Hout Bay.
Two people died when a charter boat, The Miroshga, capsized near Duiker Island at about 15:00 on Saturday.
De Lille expressed gratitude to the National Sea and Rescue Institute (NSRI) team that responded to the call of saving other passengers of the boat.
"Their courageous acts have helped save the lives of the survivors of this tragedy."
De Lille also sent condolences to the relatives of the men who died.
NSRI Hout Bay's Brad Geyser said there initially was confusion about how many people had been on the boat and how many had already been rescued.
When NSRI arrived, they found that some people had been rescued by two charter boats.
At the time, four people were still missing, three women and one man. A woman, using an air pocket to breathe, was rescued from inside the hull of the boat.
Emergency dive training
"On further investigation, and deeper inside the hull of the upturned boat, police divers came across two females trapped deep inside the hull and who were also using air pockets to breath," he said.
Both women are believed to be from the United Kingdom.
"After coaching the females on some emergency dive training, both were successfully brought out by the police divers to safety."
Geyser said 24 people were hospitalised for further medical treatment and 12 people did not require to be hospitalised and were assessed and treated for hypothermia before they were released.
"The NSRI are aware of South Africans, United Kingdom citizens and French citizens who were onboard and are still trying to determine if there were passengers of other nationalities," Geyser said.
Police have opened an inquest docket, he added.
- SAPA
