Fishermen rescued from being sucked through river mouth towards open sea
The motor of the small river boat the two men were fishing from failed, and they were using oars to negotiate the waves in the channel of the river mouth.
Two local men, aged in their early 20s, with their small river boat that was swept through the river mouth. Picture: NSRI Plettenberg Bay
Two fishermen were rescued by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Plettenberg Bay duty crew after the motor of the small river boat they were fishing from failed at the Keurbooms River Mouth.
Marc Rodgers, NSRI Plettenberg Bay station commander, explained that the duty crew was alerted to the small river boat with two men on board being swept through the Keurbooms River Mouth and launched the sea rescue craft Airlink Rescuer at 6.25pm on Sunday.
“The sea rescue craft, Ray Farnham, was also launched and on arrival on the scene, we found two men on a small river boat using paddles to negotiate the waves in the channel and already at the back-line breakers and just managing to keep their craft pointed into the waves to avoid capsizing,” said Rodgers.
“They were taken under tow by the sea rescue craft Ray Farnham and towed to Central Beach, where their boat was recovered, and they required no further assistance.”
Rodgers said the men were sucked through the mouth towards the open sea.
“Another boat that had launched to assist the two men was stuck on a sand bank and our NSRI crews assisted them off the sand bank and back through the river mouth, and they required no further assistance,” concluded Rodgers.
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