Strandfontein – A 74-year-old man’s body was recovered on Saturday morning after he failed to return home from a paddle to a neighbour’s house in Marina Da Gama in Cape Town on Friday evening.
NSRI spokesperson, Craig Lambinon, said concerned family members had contacted the Strandfontein NSRI and asked for assistance after the man failed to return from a paddle.
“It is suspected that he had paddled to another residence on the marina earlier in the day and when the family arrived home in the early evening he was not at home. He was not at the other residence and the canoe he had been paddling on was also not found, raising concerns that he may be missing on the Marina,” he said.
Lambinon said the local neighbourhood watch, friends and family and a large community effort had started a search along with the police, NSRI members from Standfontein, Simonstown and Kommetjie, and members of the Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services.
He said an extensive search had resulted in the canoe being found during the early hours of the morning. It appeared to have washed ashore, raising concerns that the man was missing in the marina.
Lambinon said this had raised concerns and the search continued for the missing man, but the search was suspended when no signs of him were found.
Lambinon said the search resumed at 07:30 on Saturday morning, with the assistance of the police dive unit and a police helicopter supported by the fire and rescue services dive unit and the NSRI Strandfontein.
He said the canoe had been found on Friday afternoon by a resident, who had recovered the canoe to his yard, thinking it had been abandoned or washed off a nearby yard.
“Sadly, during the search, the body of the man was located and recovered by police divers and the body will be taken into the care of the forensic pathology services,” he said.
Lambinon said police had opened an inquest docket.
“All emergency services teams on the scene have expressed condolences to family and friends and the huge public and community support and assistance is commended,” he said.
