Friends’ outing ends in tragedy as Joburg man drowns in Gonubie River

A 30-year-old Johannesburg man drowned in the Gonubie River in KuGompo City on Sunday afternoon. Attempts to resuscitate him were all in vain after a teenager pulled him from the water. The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) on Monday morning confirmed the drowning incident.

“At about 2.45pm, on Sunday, Buffalo City Metro lifeguards, while on duty at Gonubie Beach, were alerted by a man running towards the lifeguards, raising the alarm, reporting a drowning accident almost a kilometre upstream on the Gonubie River,” NSRI local station commander Cathrine Prentis said. “BCM lifeguards responded while alerting NSRI East London, Priority Care ambulance services and the SA Police Services. “On arrival on the scene BCMM lifeguards initiated CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) efforts on an adult male who had been rescued from the water by a local teenager.

“Lifeguards were joined on the scene by paramedics, but despite extensive CPR efforts, after all efforts to resuscitate the man were exhausted, sadly the man was declared deceased by paramedics.” The NSRI extended condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of the man. “It appears that three friends, work colleagues from Johannesburg, were visiting the river when, we believe, two of the men were swimming when the one man got into difficulties, disappearing under water,” Prentis said. “Three locals, an adult man and two teenagers, brothers, had reportedly seen the incident occur and one of the teenagers went to the man’s aid where, assisted by his brother, he was able to locate and recover the man from the water and rescue him to the shoreline. “The local adult man had run down to the beach seeking help and raising the alarm.”