Freak waves wreak havoc
Kim Tomlinson was with her friend Shelby Boland at the restaurant when the unexpected happened.
A trail of destruction has been left behind after a set of powerful rogue waves struck the South Coast last Sunday afternoon.
In the aftermath, stories of emotional shock and disbelief have emerged from locals and visitors who are lucky to be alive.
The series of ‘freak’ waves crashed through Mariners Seafood Restaurant in Marina beach leaving five people seriously injured, according to Kwazulu Private Ambulance Service.
It was the quick reaction of lifeguards, Lwazi Mtolo, Sthandiwe Ngcobo and Sipho Mphisana which led Kim Tomlinson (52) visiting from Australia being rescued from the sea shortly after being washed out.
Kim was with her friend Shelby Boland at the restaurant when the unexpected happened.
“I was sitting with my back to the ocean when the first wave smashed me into the corner of the restaurant. It then sucked me out to sea. If it wasn’t for the lifeguards yelling for me to get up and run I would have been dragged out to sea by the next wave,” she said.
Kim, who has been left traumatised by the event, said her body was battered onto the sand bags, concrete and rocks on the beach, leaving her with bruises all over her body, and stitches to her middle finger.
“I’m an ocean-person but the sea was so rough and wild that afternoon, and these images keep going round and round in my head,” she said.
Astoundingly Kim managed to recover her handbag the next day, which was taken by the waves. She also managed to recover her bank cards and mobile phone, which remarkably still works. However, the cash in her handbag was gone.
“I am lucky to be alive and I can’t thank the lifeguards enough, as I would have been taken out to sea on the second wave,” she said.
Her friend Shelby was also left injured when the concrete table and chairs swept on to his legs.
The South African Weather Service said last weekend’s weather can be explained as a combination of high waves, spring tide, and conducive wind conditions which resulted in positive storm surge with its effects experienced along the coast at various locations.
Photographer Jacques Sellschop, who captured the mess left behind: “There is a cruel irony in some of the notices displayed – who would have thought that ‘Shipwreck Pub’ could be a precursor to disaster of such magnitude?”
“And as for shooters, ‘Frozen Margaritas’ and ‘Sex on the beach’ seem to be such a forlorn wish amid the debris. Hopefully a charitable insurance and a resolute owner can combine their resources to resurrect this iconic landmark on our coast.”
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