Two children hospitalised, three rescues carried out in NSRI Simons Town operations

Two young girls were transported to the hospital following a near-drowning incident at Millers Point, while three separate sea rescue operations were carried out by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Simons Town over the weekend.

NSRI Simons Town station commander Darren Zimmerman said the first incident occurred shortly before 1pm on Saturday, December 27, when rescue crews were activated following reports of a drowning in progress at Millers Point Beach.

NSRI rescue swimmers, Cape Medical Response paramedics and City of Cape Town emergency services responded to the scene, where two young girls, aged five and eight, had already been pulled from the water.

The children, from East Ridge and Hanover Park, were treated for non-fatal drowning symptoms before being transported to the hospital in stable condition. 

"It appears that the two children were reportedly floating on a small lilo that may have deflated in the water. We believe that family members had tried to rescue the children when three bystanders were able to rescue them," said Mr Zimmerman. 

According to Mr Zimmerman, the Good Samaritans rescued the children from the water and initiated cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the younger child, restoring a pulse and breathing before paramedics arrived.

Earlier on Saturday morning, at around 9.40am, NSRI Simons Town crews were activated after a SafeTRX emergency alert indicated a surf-skier in distress between Roman Rock Lighthouse and Fish Hoek.

Rescue craft were launched, and a man was located floating in the water after falling off his surf-ski. He was brought safely to shore at Fish Hoek, medically assessed by paramedics and found to be uninjured, said Mr Zimmerman.

The man, from Durban, had been separated from his surf-ski after his leash snapped. The alarm was raised by a fellow surf-skier who encountered him and activated the SafeTRX emergency app. His surf-ski remains missing at sea.

In a third incident on Friday, December 26, NSRI crews rescued two men who were blown out to sea while fishing on a small inflatable craft off Millers Point.

The men, aged 35 and 39 from Mitchells Plain, were located about half a nautical mile offshore and brought safely back to shore. They were not injured and required no further medical assistance.

The NSRI urged the public to exercise caution at sea, particularly in strong winds, and to avoid using inflatable craft in open water.