Two Bluewater Bay lifeguards, Pierre van der Merwe and Jaco Kruger, and a wildlife conservation officer, Jody Africa, a past student at Muir College in Uitenhage, have been nominated for Lifesaving South Africa Bravery Awards following an incident that took place during the Annual Fish River Canoe Marathon that took place early last month.
The nominations were made by Mr Tyrrel Murray, of Rondebosch in the Western Cape, whose daughter, Candice, was one of two canoests that were rescued when she got into difficulty at the Cradock Weir – a well-known obstacle on the second day of the marathon. The other patient was Steph von der Heyde. Candice is a lifeguard of Fish Hoek Surf Lifesaving Club.
In a summary of his nomination, which has been submitted to Lifesaving South Africa by Lifesaving Eastern Cape, Mr Murray said: “The incident could have turned nasty, and I believe that recognition of the brave actions of the lifeguards would be appropriate.
“The paddlers paddle over the wall, fall down a drop and hope to land safely. If they don’t, there are lifesavers positioned to pull them out before they get sucked into the wash. Candice and Steph did not make the landing, and once the lifesavers went in to rescue them the base tower collapsed meaning that they could not be pulled out as would usually be the case.
“Jody Africa (left) was the initial person to go after them but he lost them and almost got into big trouble himself once the tower collapsed.”
Jody was present to learn about lifesaving as he believed it would be valuable experience given his work in game parks where there are waterholes for animals, and even rivers that need to be crossed at times.
One thing he did learn, is that despite being an excellent swimmer, it takes something special to be a lifeguard.
“Pierre Van Der Merwe (Bluewater Bay Lifesaving Club) was the one who stayed with them in the weir and kept them up for the duration.”
Pierre told the Echo that the lifeguards on the tower wore harnesses that we attached to the tower. The rescue was made more difficult by the tower collapsing.
Pierre is a fully qualified lifeguard who is also qualified as a Rescue Skipper.
This weekend, Pierre, who has been a voluntary lifeguard for many years, will be manning the beach at Bluewater Bay as a professional lifeguard for the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality during the summer season.
“Jaco Kruger (Bluewater Bay Lifesaving Club) saved the day – when he saw that they were not getting out of the wash (they were repeatedly being sucked back in) he was the one who then slid down the weir, taking a huge personal risk, to break them free from the wash,” wrote Mr Murray.
Jaco has been managing the water safety for the Fish River Canoe Marathon for many years and is a former member of the Bluewater Bay Surf Lifesaving Club.
A video of the incident, recorded by Dustin Dundas-Starr, has been distributed widely through social media.
