Overview
- Two men were swept out by rip currents while trying to rescue a colleague at Strand Beach, with the incident occurring on Wednesday afternoon.
- A local surfer pulled the initial casualty from the water and that person was treated by paramedics and released.
- Police divers, assisted by the NSRI and emergency services, recovered an adult body on Thursday morning in the Helderberg Marine Protected Area that is believed to be the 39-year-old rescuer.
- Formal family and forensic identification remain pending and police have opened an inquest while search teams continue efforts to locate the remaining 22-year-old man.
- The multi-agency response combined NSRI boats, WPDS police divers, EMS aircraft and drones, and City rescue units, underscoring the danger of rip currents at the Lourens River mouth for swimmers and would-be rescuers.