Body of fourth drowning victim at Eastern Cape beach found

The body of the fourth victim who drowned at the Kariega main beach at Kenton-On-Sea, in the Eastern Cape, on New Year’s Day has been found.

Kenton-On-Sea New Year’s Day drownings

The nine-year-old boy was among three girls, aged between 11 and 12 years, who drowned at the beach on Sunday afternoon.

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According to police reports, the South African Police Service with assistance from the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) and other stakeholders recovered three bodies of the four children after they washed onto the beach where a bystander administered cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

The body of the nine-year-old boy was found washed up on the beach on Thursday morning in Kenton.

Police spokesperson Warrant Officer Majola Nkohli said the boy’s body was seen by a member of the public around 5am. The little boy has been named 11-year-old Anovuyo Cirha.

Nkohli said police opened inquest dockets for further investigation.

In a separate incident last month, police recovered the body of a man who had drowned in the Sol Plaatje Dam in the Free State on 16 December, Day of Reconciliation.

The Welkom Rescue and Divers team retrieved the body from the dam.

The deceased was a male person, between 28 and 30. He was declared dead by Emergency Medical Rescue personnel on the scene.

This article was compiled by Thapelo Lekabe. Additional reporting by Devina Haripersad

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