News24 | UPDATE | Search intensifies for 3 missing after mass drowning at KZN beach

Teams are searching for two people who were swept out to sea.

• Search teams have widened their efforts along KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast after it emerged that three young men, not two as initially reported, remain missing following a deadly rip current incident at Pennington Beach on New Year’s Day.
• What began as a rescue for five people swept into the surf has grown into a multi-agency recovery operation, with three confirmed deaths and questions still surrounding the fate of three men believed to be in their early 20s.
• As authorities continue searching the coastline and sea, the Pennington tragedy has underscored a surge in serious water-related incidents reported across the country on New Year’s Day.

The search has intensified for three young men, up from two initially reported, who remain missing after a mass drowning incident at Pennington Beach on KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast on New Year’s Day.

Rescue teams resumed operations at first light on Friday after it emerged that more people had been involved in the incident than initially believed.

IPSS Medical Rescue, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), Police Search and Rescue, the SA Police Service and Umdoni lifeguards have been conducting extensive search efforts along the coastline and out to sea.

The incident occurred in the early evening on Thursday, 1 January, when a group of people was swept into the surf zone near the Pennington Beach tidal pool after being caught in rip currents.

READ | One dead, one rescued and three others missing at KZN’s Pennington Beach

Initial reports indicated that five people were in distress. One 21-year-old man was declared dead during the initial rescue operation, while an 18-year-old woman was rescued unharmed. Another 21-year-old man was later found dead by police on a nearby beach at about 21.30 on Thursday.

On Friday morning, during continued search operations, an 18-year-old woman was found dead at Bazley Beach. Police confirmed that she had also gone missing during the Pennington Beach incident.

This brings the total toll linked to the incident to three people dead – two men aged 21 and an 18-year-old woman – while three men, all believed to be 21 years old, remain missing.

“All involved are believed to be from KwaZulu-Natal,” NSRI spokesperson Craig Lambinon said.

Police have opened inquest dockets into the deaths, while search operations continue for the missing men.

The Pennington tragedy is among several serious water-related incidents reported around the country on New Year’s Day. In Gordon’s Bay in the Western Cape, NSRI teams recovered the body of a man floating in the surf zone.

In Langebaan, the body of a 26-year-old man from Burundi was discovered in the water by a kiteboarder.

READ | Lifeguard saves four in dramatic Miller’s Point beach rescue

In Knysna, a 13-year-old boy was rescued and resuscitated by NSRI crews after suffering a medical emergency while swimming. He was transported to hospital.

In KwaZulu-Natal, the search also continues for a 15-year-old boy who disappeared while swimming at Jabula Beach in St Lucia after he and two others were swept out by rip currents. Two people were rescued.

On Friday morning, IPSS Medical Rescue also responded to reports of a swimmer in distress at Thompson’s Bay beach in Ballito, where KwaDukuza lifeguards and the NSRI have launched a search.

Authorities have urged beachgoers to exercise extreme caution, particularly in areas affected by strong rip currents.

Meanwhile, inland, in Polokwane, police opened an inquest after the discovery of the body of a person attached to the South African National Defence Force on Thursday morning.

“The report received by the police is that this morning at around 04:00, the deceased, together with other two occupants of the car (Renault Triber), [was] swept by heavy flowing water after the car got stuck under the bridge along Grobler Street,” said Colonel Malesela Ledwaba.

“It is further reported that the other two occupants including the driver managed to grab reeds and exit the river, but the deceased, 36, unfortunately did not survive the catastrophic incident. The search was conducted by divers, and the body was found about 2.5km from the initial scene and retrieved from the river.”

Editor’s note: This story has been updated with the latest information.