Pretoria: 08 August 2023

An urgent search and rescue operation commenced in the southern seas of South Africa early Tuesday morning for a fisher who went missing from a fishing trawler.

This was prompted by a distress signal received from the vessel, which was later discovered to have run aground near Mossel Bay in the Gouritzmond area, according to a report by the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA).  

The incident began when a distress call was transmitted by the fishing vessel DIJAANDA, pinpointed to the Gouritzmond region. Responding swiftly, the fishing vessel Vuna Elisa headed toward the potential emergency location, while the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) Mossel Bay initiated a search along the coastal shore.  

Ultimately, the NSRI managed to locate the vessel stranded on the rocks and successfully rescued the crew members on board. Sadly, out of the seven (7) crew members, four (4) were discovered to have perished, one (1) was injured, and another remained missing.  

“The NSRI teams stationed in Mossel Bay and Stilbaai have launched a search and rescue operation for the missing crew member since approximately 7:30 am today,” SAMSA informed.

Further updates are anticipated throughout the day.

End.