Jonathan Britton, NSRI Wilderness station commander, said: At 10h40, Wednesday, 25 March, NSRI Wilderness duty crew were activated following reports of a drowning in progress at Herolds Bay.
NSRI rescue swimmers responded directly to the scene while NSRI Wilderness crew responded to the NSRI Herolds Bay station 23 satellite rescue base and dispatched emergency equipment.
ER24 ambulance services and WC Government Health EMS were activated and responded.
While responding to the scene NSRI were notified that a bystander surfer Good Samaritan, assisted by additional bystander Good Samaritans, had rescued an adult male from the surf zone and local community members were assisting the Good Samaritans and the injured man on the beach.
NSRI crew arrived on the scene and NSRI medics continued with medical treatment and were joined by ER24 and EMS paramedics.
The 24 year old man, from India, was stabilised on the scene by paramedics before being transported to hospital by ambulance in a serious but stable condition.
The man is recovering in hospital in the care of doctors and nurses and he is expected to make a full recovery.
He is part of a group of International student pilots in South Africa conducting light aircraft flight training around South Africa.
They were at the beach swimming when the casualty man was caught in rip currents.
Bystanders at the beach noticed the man in difficulty in the water and went to his aid while raising the alarm.
A surfer, Good Samaritan, from Cape Town, on a vacation with his wife, they had driven down to Herolds Bay, while en route to Plettenberg Bay, when while driving down the hill they happened to notice the emergency unfolding in front of them – the man parked his car and grabbed his surf board launching his surf board into the surf and he reached the casualty man who was unconscious and face down in the surf zone and slipping under water.
The surfer Good Samaritan was able to recover the man onto his surfboard and he began paddling his surfboard towards the beach while keeping the man secure on his surfboard.
While the surfer was paddling towards the beach additional bystanders, Good Samaritans, from Harlem, Western Cape, had waded into the water to assist, and they assisted the surfer to carry the casualty man onto the beach where local community members and friends (fellow pilots) of the man assisted them.
The Good Samaritan Cape Town surfer is commended for reaching the man in the water initiating a rescue using his surfboard as floatation.
The Good Samaritan bystanders, from Harlem, are commended for their assistance.
Their combined efforts contributed to a life saved.
The Herolds Bay community, well known for always assisting NSRI and emergency services in these kinds of emergencies, are commended for their assistance on the scene.
Our thoughts and care are with the man and his friends, fellow pilots, and family, while he recovers in hospital.
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