Accidents.co.za | Discussion, Prevention, Investigation and Response

Drowning – how do we decrease the risk for our children in South Africa?

It is fast becoming one of those topics where someone you know, or someone in your group of friends or family, knows of an incident of accidental drowning occurring amongst them.

It is suspected that during the summer months, the risk of accidental drowning in South Africa increases, but this almost solely applies to residential areas where pools are installed and made use of during this time. For most part, and including the larger part of the country, there are a number of people residing on river banks, or close to large bodies of water all year round. These people are thus also affected by weather conditions and the need to use the water on a daily basis.

Education plays a vital role in ensuring that people are aware of the risks involved when in close vicinity of these bodies of water, and how to assist were an incident to occur. For those of us who have the time and the means, it may be useful to complete a first aid course, where First Aid Level 1 is a two day course covering the basics in first aid, including CPR (Cardiopulmonary resuscitation), choking, impaled object management, fracture management and bleeding control.

One may also complete a short 3 hour CPR course, which teaches on how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation on adults, children and infants. Although extremely important, we cannot exclusively focus on educating those people who have pools in their back yards relating to the dangers of accidental drowning, we need to make an exerted effort to also educate those who collect their water from reservoirs or dams, wash up in rivers, and have general large amounts of water around their areas of residence.

With regards to pools, we are all aware of the necessary safety measures that need to be in place to protect our children and loved ones from accidental drowning. If you type the words ‘Pool Safety’ into GoogleTM , pages upon pages of tips for securing pools are available, which is definitely encouraging, but type in ‘River safety’, and the pages will encourage those who canoe, do extreme white water rafting, and river guides to be cautious while performing their activities.

One of the pages found, www.ekurhuleni.com, displays some sound advice for those who may find themselves in danger when in a river:

* River currents are often stronger than they appear. You can throw a twig in to check how fast the river is flowing.
* If you are caught in a current, float on your back and travel downstream feet first to protect your head. Angle towards the shore.
* Remember that river conditions can change rapidly and without warning due to heavy rains.
* Take care on river banks. They are often slippery and can even crumble away, resulting in someone accidentally falling into the water.
* A place that might usually be safe to cross will be lethal when there has been even a slight rainstorm somewhere along the river. Rather walk a little further to a safe crossing and live another day.

Also, it may be important to mention, for those of us who either collect large amounts of water for agricultural purposes, or purely for household use as it would be in many informal settlement, it is imperative that buckets, drums, and large vats of water be covered and inaccessible to children.

And to re-emphasise the importance of pool safety, here are some tips to prevent an accidental drowning in your pool:

* Direct, uninterrupted adult supervision is key when children are making use of the pool.
* Enclose the pool in a fence with a lockable gate or automatic latch mechanism.
* Cover the pool with a safety net or similar device.
* Pool alarms that signal when there is an unexplained splash in the pool are now readily available.
* Close and lock doors in the residence if they lead directly into the pool area.
* Swimming lessons for children may reduce panic in children if accidentally submerged in water.

Please carefully consider and remember that there is no substitute for direct adult supervision with regard to children and water safety. This may be the most important factor which may save your child from being another statistic in accidental drowning in South Africa.

Information from ER24

Two males in their early twenties decided to brave the cold water of Melkbos strand and go for a mid day swim at the main beach.

Local surfer and resident chef at a well known sea side restaurant spotted the two bathers entering the water, and knew that the bathers could face some strong currents. After approximately twenty minutes, one of the bathers exited the water while indicating that something is wrong. Surfboard and wetsuit in hand the Good Samaritan rushed to the aid of the struggling bather who had drifted off a fair distance, into large swell. He managed to paddle out on his board and assist the bather to sore.

The bather was in a fair amount of shock, but managed to thank all who came to his aid. ER24 paramedics treated the near drowning victim at the scene for hypothermia. He was then transported to hospital in a stable condition per ER24 ambulance.

Andre Visser
ER24

ER24 and the Life LSU were called to Cape Town Harbour for a female patient that had fallen approximately five metres in a ships hull.

When paramedics arrived on the scene they assessed the patient and found that the patient was in a stable condition, but due to the mechanism of injury and the patients chief complaints, they would need the assistance of rescue services to get the patient from where she landed to the deck of the ship.

Metro Rescue was called to bring the necessary equipment and perform the rescue. They loaded the patient into a stokes basket and lifted the basket with ropes via a pulley system. Once the lady was on the deck an on-site crane was used to move the patient from the ship to the waiting ER24 ambulance.

The fifty five-year-old lady was transported to Life Vincent Pallotti Hospital for the further medical care of moderate injuries.

Tristan Wadeley
ER24

[Photos by: Liesel Grantham]

Icy water and the misleading depth of the Vals River with its whirlpools were believed to have led to the death of a Kroonstad man after he jumped into the water to fetch a suitcase.

“One moment I saw his head above water and the next he was gone,” said a stunned Jaco du Plessis, 22, on the river bank.

Tow-truck worker Andries Vermaak, 41, disappeared into the water in front of Du Plessis in the river that ran through Kroonstad at about 21:00.

“Andries didn’t struggle or flounder. He just disappeared.”

Initially, Du Plessis thought Vermaak, who had been boarding with him for the past three months, was joking around.

But when some time had passed and he was still under water, Du Plessis feared something had happened and called the police.

The police’s Welkom diving unit retrieved Vermaak’s body and the suitcase on Wednesday morning. A dismayed Du Plessis stood on the river bank and watched as the divers searched for the body.

Many drownings in river

The tragedy occurred after Du Plessis, and other family members had gone to fetch his 26-year-old brother Kobus from the train station in the central part of town on Tuesday night. Vermaak had gone along.

They were walking from the train station across the Alexander Bridge to Du Plessis’s house in the residential area Suidrand.

Vermaak was carrying Kobus du Plessis’s wife, Louisa’s, suitcase. While walking on the bridge, the suitcase apparently fell over the railing and into the river, said police spokesperson Msisitheki Selima.

Vermaak ran to the river and jumped into the water. Du Plessis said Vermaak “went in, swam a bit and then just went down”.

According to a long-time resident, the Vals (False in Afrikaans) River got its name as the bottom was uneven in many places. There were apparently also whirlpools. This misled people and had lead to many drowning over the years.

[Story by Johan Brits appeared in Beeld]

Two students were in an inflatable swimming pool type boat on the Potchefstroom Dam which was in flood.

They became entangled in a piece of rope in the Mooiriver, and the water was too strong and they were unable to get to the river bank to get out. They then clung to a small tree in the river until help arrived. ER24 paramedics treated the two for mild hypothermia as they had been in the water for approximately an hour.

Vanessa Jackson
ER24

A man, believed to be in his forties, nearly drowned at Blue Lagoon after he allegedly slipped off the rocks and fell into the water.

The man was rescued by lifeguards that were on duty. When ER24 paramedics arrived on the scene the patient was being treated by the lifeguards and a paramedic from EMRS for submersion injuries.

The patient was handed over to ER24 crews and was transported to Addington Hospital in a serious but stable condition.

Tristan Wadeley
ER24

Two people were found dead this afternoon on Warner Beach, Amanzimtoti. A third person was rushed off to a nearby hospital prior to the arrival of emergency services.

Shortly after 12:00 paramedics received the call from bystanders on the scene explaining that three men were washed into the sea. Paramedics that arrived on the scene found two bodies on the beach with life guards performing CPR.

A child believed to be 13 years old an an adult approximately 40 years old was found with no signs of life. Paramedics initiated Advanced Life Support on the scene. Unfortunately both of the swimmers were declared dead on the scene.

It is understood that two adults tried to rescue the young boy when they noticed he was in distress. One of the men managed to get back to the beach. He was transported to a local hospital prior to the arrival of emergency services.

The incident was handed over to the local police department.

Werner Vermaak

ER24

A woman has been found in a vehicle floating in the Duzi river in Sobantu Village in Pietermaritzburg.

The woman, believed to be in her mid 20’s, was allegedly reported missing on Saturday the 20th of March. She allegedly left her home in Northdale to drop a friend off at home nearby.

ER24 Paramedics on scene explained that the vehicle was barely visible, as it was lodged in the reeds and bush in the river. The GPS coordinates of the tracking device within the missing vehicle was use to locate it.

It is unknown why and how long the vehicle was in the river, but there was no reports of flooding, and the vehicle was found approximately 500m from a low level bridge.

SAPS, Pietermaritzburg Search and Rescuers, SAPS Dog Unit and the Flying Squad were in attendance. The divers allegedly took two hours to find a safe location where they could enter the river to retrieve the woman’s body.

An investigation will be undertaken to determined the cause of the woman’s disappearance and drowning.

Vanessa Jackson
ER24

A man drowned in a fish pond this afternoon in the Erasmus kloof area of Pretoria. It is alleged that the man was working for a landscape company at Castle Park. His friends had last seen him yesterday but when they arrived at work this morning they found his belongings floating in the fish pond.

Netcare paramedics from the Pretoria East base as well as police were dispatched to the call. When they arrived they were unable to ascertain if the man was in the pond and the police divers were called. Divers searched to murky water and recovered the body of the missing worker sadly he had passed away some hours before.

Chris Botha

Netcare 911

Drownings in Durban and in Pietermaritzburg left three people dead, the youngest of which a nine-year-old boy.

In the first incident a nine-year-old boy was pulled from the surf off Wedge Beach north of Addington Hospital this morning. It is thought that the boy had been swimming at the unprotected beach when he got into distress and was pulled out. He was noticed by a surfer who managed to pull the boy to shore and initiate CPR.

Netcare911 Paramedics arrived and took over care of the child. Medics attempted to resuscitate the boy for nearly an hour before he was declared dead.

Later a thirty seven-year-old man drowned in the surf off Winklespruit beach south of Durban.

It is thought that the man had been swimming in the surf when he was pulled out to the backline by a strong rip current. He was immersed in water for nearly three minutes when he was pulled to the shore by lifeguards who had swum to his aid.

When Netcare911 Paramedics arrived at the scene they initiated an advanced life support resuscitation attempt which sadly failed and they man was declared dead at the scene.

This evening a man in his twenties died in an incident at Unisa’s Pietermaritzburg campus.

It is thought that the man had been swimming in their campuses pool when he was, for an unknown reason, submerged in the water.

He was pulled from the water by those who witnessed the incident and Netcare911 Paramedics were called. Unfortunately the man died prior to their arrival and was declared dead.

Jeffrey Wicks
Netcare 911