VIGILENCE AND SERVICE Andrew Ingram pays tribute to Clive Cerff, whose legacy will live on in the Strandfontein lifeguard unit

In December 2019, the community of Strandfontein mourned the passing of one of its beloved sons. Andrew Ingram pays tribute to Clive Cerff, whose legacy will live on in the Strandfontein lifeguard unit. I N EVERY COMMUNITY THERE is a legend and in Strandfontein, about 45km north of Lamberts Bay on the West Coast, that legend was Clive Cerff.

The ocean was Clive’s love and life. Even his home is built on a cliff overlooking the bay called Die Hel, which formed part of his diamond claim and where he died on 15 December 2019. The sea was big on the day Clive took his lifeguard board out as he so often did at the end of a lifeguarding duty shift. He launched on the far left of the beach and, using the rip to get out, he was soon in his happy place riding the huge sets that were pushing through.

When Clive was separated from his board and decided to swim around the point to Die Hel, his fellow lifeguards were not particularly concerned. He was in a wetsuit. And it was Clive in the water – if ever there was an expert waterman, it was him. The swim was a long one in rough seas, but a friend and fellow lifeguard was keeping watch high above, giving Clive directions with hand signals. As Clive was entering his bay, a set came through and just after giving a thumbs-up he disappeared from view. It was the last time that Clive was seen alive. A huge search was launched immediately, with Sea Rescue Lamberts Bay responding by road in an effort to help. His body was recovered later and the Strandfontein community was in shock.

The beach at Strandfontein is very beautiful and often used as a holiday venue by local farmers. But it is also dangerous. The rip currents are legendary and require strict control from lifeguards, who must remain extra vigilant to make sure nobody gets into the water beyond the flags. Lamberts Bay NSRI station commander Avril Mocke and Sea Rescue lifeguard coordinator Stewart Seini met with representatives of the Matzikama Municipality and the Strandfontein community on that sad day and resolved that, in memory of Clive Cerff, lifeguarding would go on. The next day, on 16 December, a team of Sea Rescue lifeguards kept Strandfontein Beach safe as Clive’s friends were in mourning.

On the wall in the lifeguard tower is Clive’s Surf Proficiency Award, issued on 24 April 1977 by The Surf Lifesaving Association of South Africa. Although the ink is fading on this old certificate, it reminds the lifeguards who now sit duty there of ‘vigilance and service’. And for those who knew him, Clive’s three rules are always top of mind: expect the unexpected, never give up, and prevention is better than cure. SERVICE Vigilance and