Bystanders save two young girls in dramatic Millers Point Beach water rescue

Bystanders and emergency services quickly intervened to save the lives of two young girls during a dramatic water rescue at Millers Point Beach on Saturday afternoon.

According to National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Simons Town station commander Darren Zimmerman, duty crews were activated at 12:43 pm on Saturday, December 27, following reports of a drowning in progress.

NSRI rescue swimmers, supported by a Cape Medical Response (CMR) ambulance and rescue paramedics, were dispatched to the scene.

The City of Cape Town's water rescue network was also alerted, with Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services, Disaster Risk Management and City Law Enforcement responding.

Fire and Rescue crews arrived first and confirmed that two female children — aged five and eight — had been safely removed from the water. Both were treated on scene for non-fatal drowning symptoms.

The girls, from East Ridge and Hanover Park respectively, were stabilised by paramedics before being transported to hospital by CMR ambulance. They were reported to be in stable condition and are expected to make full recoveries.

Zimmerman said it appeared the children had been floating on a small inflatable lilo that may have deflated while in the water. Family members attempted to assist before three bystanders — two adult men and an adult woman — were able to rescue the children from the water.

The bystanders reportedly initiated CPR on the five-year-old until her pulse and spontaneous breathing returned, before paramedics arrived and took over medical care.

The NSRI commended the bystanders for their swift and decisive actions, which contributed to saving the lives of the two children.

Earlier on Saturday morning, at 9:40 am, NSRI Simons Town was activated after an emergency alert was triggered on the NSRI SafeTRX app, indicating a surf-skier in distress between Roman Rock Lighthouse and Fish Hoek. Rescue crews launched multiple rescue craft after attempts to contact the female surf-skier who activated the alert were unsuccessful due to strong winds.

During the search, NSRI rescuers located an adult man floating in the water and rescued him onto a JetRIB. It was later confirmed that the man, from Durban, had fallen from his surf-ski after his leash snapped, leaving him unable to retrieve the craft. A fellow female surf-skier came across him in the water and activated the SafeTRX emergency to raise the alarm.

The man was brought safely to Fish Hoek Beach, medically assessed by CMR paramedics, and found to be uninjured. His surf-ski remains missing offshore between Fish Hoek and Simons Town. The woman who raised the alarm has been commended for her quick response.

In a third incident, NSRI Simons Town responded on Friday, December 26, at 1:15 pm, after reports that two men on a small inflatable craft were being blown out to sea off Millers Point.

Eyewitnesses, including motorists along the coastal road, reported seeing the men drifting rapidly toward Simons Town in strong south-easterly winds.

An NSRI rescue craft conducting training in the area diverted to assist and located the men about half a nautical mile offshore near Murdoch Valley. The two men, aged 35 and 39 and from Mitchells Plain, were rescued along with their inflatable craft, described as a supermarket blow-up fishing boat.

They had launched earlier to go fishing but were unable to row back to shore against the wind. Neither was injured, and both were reunited with their families.

NSRI has urged the public to exercise extreme caution around the coastline, particularly in windy conditions, and warned against using unsuitable inflatable craft at sea.

Get your news on the go, click here to join the Cape Argus News WhatsApp channel.

Cape Argus