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HE WILD COAST is a 250km stretch of coastline in the Eastern Cape that extends
St Johns, but it was unable to maintain sufficient crew to keep it operational,’ he adds.
from Kei Mouth near Morgan Bay up to the Mtamvuna River close to the province’s border with KwaZulu-Natal. It’s an area of breathtaking natural beauty – desolate, rustic beaches, precipitous craggy cliffs, secluded bays, rolling green hills and river valleys – that attracts droves of holidaymakers eager to trade busy city life for a week or two of coastal country living. The Wild Coast is, however, largely unattended by a permanent NSRI service, with Station 7 (East London) and Station 32 (Port Edward) flanking the region and responding to callouts when required. ‘The need for NSRI to provide support to a stretch of coastline this long is unquestionable,’ says NSRI Operations Manager Bruce Sandmann. ‘In past years, a rescue station was based in Port
Recent drowning incidents, yachts requiring assistance and vessels in distress off the Wild Coast have confirmed the need for a Sea Rescue presence, so the decision was made to reactivate the station at Port St Johns as well as establish two lifeguard stations in strategic positions along the coast: Kei Mouth (Station 47) and Mdumbi (Station 49), near Coffee Bay. In the run-up to the re-opening of the station at Port St Johns at the end of November, five NSRI crew have been trained to operate vessels out of the river mouth to assist those in difficulty at sea. Port St Johns will operate as all other NSRI stations do, with ongoing training, development and support from head office. The lifeguard stations were also earmarked to be up and running by the end of November, in time for the holiday season.
Expanding our
FOOTPRINT
The NSRI will soon be reopening Station 28 (Port St Johns) and launching two lifeguard stations at Kei Mouth and Mdumbi Beach to provide a much-needed rescue service along one of South Africa’s most picturesque – and dangerous – coastlines, the Wild Coast. By Wendy Maritz
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SEA RESCUE SUMMER 2021
