Rescue buoy stolen on uMhlanga Beach
The buoy was stolen from a non-swimming beach near Durban View Park.
THE National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) said it is disheartened after one of the 11 new Pink Rescue Buoys installed along the uMhlanga Promenade was stolen.
NSRI Station Five crew member and uMhlanga Pink Buoy project coordinator, Dion Beneke, said the buoys were put up before the long Easter weekend to boost bathers’ safety.
The buoy was stolen from a non-swimming beach near Durban View Park and just metres away from where a 47-year-old Russian tourist drowned in February this year.
“This is one of the drowning hotspots we identified working alongside lifeguards. This rescue buoy was crucial because we are so far away from any lifeguard station. Despite this being a non-swimming beach and signage stating this, visitors and tourists do swim or play alongside the water’s edge. We are very disheartened by the theft because this is a device to save lives. There is even a sign stating that by stealing or damaging the buoy you are risking someone’s life,” he said.
Related article: 11 Pink Buoys to boost bathers’ safety in uMhlanga
Beneke reminded people that a stolen Pink Buoy does not only cost R1 500 but also could potentially cost a life.
“At the end of the day, someone has stolen this device either to have it as a ‘souvenior’ or as a ‘prank’, and it is no laughing matter. We have searched the vegetation on the edge of the sand dunes, but we were unable to locate it. We assume this was taken just a few days after it was installed over the long Easter weekend. My fear now is that if there is an emergency at this particular beach, there is no rescue device to help the situation. I want to encourage anyone who sees the theft of the buoys to report it to the SAPS or to the uMhlanga UIP,” he said.
The NSRI Station Five member said they would now have to find a replacement for the stolen buoy.
“As the NSRI, we want the buoys back in place. We want to save lives. We will have to replace this particular buoy, and our idea is to move it a few metres away from where it was first placed. In 2020, two rescue buoys were installed along two hotspots, and those were never tampered with or stolen. It was only after the high seas caused by the floods that one was taken out, however, that was quickly replaced,” he said.
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