A car that accidentally ended up going with the strong flow of Umgeni River didn’t exactly have its passengers feeling like they were on the Lazy River Ride. But, thanks to braver river rescuers, this unexpected rollercoaster took a turn for the better:
Umgeni River, South Africa (04 January 2024) — Brave NSRI water rescue team members started the year off with a big mission after a vehicle with locals inside found themselves on the not-so-relaxing version of the Lazy River ride.
In a case where going with the flow was not the ideal decision, it took a community of heroes to get the two unnamed locals back to safety.
According to duty commander Paul Bevin of the NSRI Durban, it all went down on 2 January when the NSRI team were alerted to the vehicle on the move down the river. This after an attempt to cross a low-level bridge hadn’t worked out for the passengers; resulting in the vehicle getting caught in the river’s fast-paced flow.
Several respondents were shortly at the scene including police, K9 Search and Rescue and EMS services, amongst others.
For the NSRI’, the goal was to get rescue swimmers into the river with throw lines at the ready to spur the rescue on. But, soon, the mission turned technical and required multiple Crocs (not the shoes) to get to the vehicle.
With commanders and police working side by side, the water rescue operation was soon navigated.
With success from rescue divers, the floating stretcher Crocs and those guiding the mission, the female trapped in the car was the first to be rescued and brought to shore; followed shortly by her male counterpart.
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