Two people drowned at city beaches on New Year’s Day, including a 10-year-old girl from Stellenbosch.
The child drowned at Strand Beach and hours later a man drowned at Graaff’s Pool in Sea Point.
This brings to 10 the total of fatal drownings along the city’s coastline since September last year.
Alan Meiklejohn, National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Gordons Bay station commander, said a resident spotted the 10-year-old girl in the water.
“The sea rescue craft searched in the direction of sea currents when a resident in a block of flats opposite Strand Beach reported sighting the girl in the water a distance away from where she had reportedly originally been swimming.
“The sea rescue craft was nearing that area at the time and NSRI crew spotted the girl, lifeless in the water. She was recovered onto the sea rescue craft and brought to paramedics on the shore where, sadly, she was declared deceased.”
According to the City of Cape Town, emergency services responded to two fatalities and more than a dozen non-fatal drownings since the start of summer.
The City’s Mayco member for community services and health, Patricia van der Ross, expressed her condolences to those who lost their loved ones.
“Our wish for our residents and visitors is always just to have a safe and enjoyable experience at our public facilities and so these incidents have certainly cast a pall on our festive season.
“I want to convey my sincerest condolences to the families who have lost loved ones to drowning this season. To those who have been hospitalised or are recovering from the trauma of a non-fatal drowning, I wish you a speedy recovery,” she said.
On Sunday 2 January, a woman in her 30s was transported to hospital from St James Beach and a 30-year-old man swimming at Monwabisi Beach also had to receive medical attention.
Meanwhile, the City’s Social Development and Early Childhood Development Department says 76 725 children were tagged in its annual Identikidz project.
During the three-week period, launched in December, 183 children were successfully reunited with their families, including 10 at Strandfontein and five at Camp’s Bay.
“I think it is safe to say that Identikidz is once again proving its worth as an extra layer of protection and peace of mind for our beachgoers. While the peak of the festive season is now behind us, we are mindful that there are still a few more weeks of school holidays left, which means our beaches and public spaces will remain fairly busy. I call on staff to continue being vigilant at all times, but also renew my call to the public to play an active role in their personal safety,” said Van der Ross.
