The NSRI celebrated its volunteers this past weekend in a ceremony dedicated to the men and women who serve South Africa. Four heroes amongst the crowd were ordinary citizens who had gone above and beyond.
South Africa (22 July 2024) – The NSRI recently held its 57th Awards ceremony and Annual General Meeting and during the ceremony, four Bravery Awards were presented to members of the public who selflessly performed life-saving rescues in challenging conditions.
The civilian awards were presented to a hero who acted in 2021, as well as three heroes who performed rescues during the Durban flooding.
Nehan Pretorius: For his courageous actions on 21 December 2023, while surfing at Victoria Bay near George, he went to the aid of a fellow surfer, Henry van Huysteen, who appeared to have suffered a seizure and fallen off his board into the water.

Members of the public who were recognised for their rescues during the Durban floods were:
Jace Govender – Bravery Gold
Ryan Hansen – Bravery Gold
Leon Fourie – Bravery Gold


“The bravery of these citizens going to the aid of someone they did not know for no reward and saving a life reflects the ethos of our NSRI volunteers and deserves recognition. We salute them.” – Brett Ayres, NSRI Operations Director
The NSRI is a national volunteer rescue service on ocean and inland waters throughout South Africa and is 100% funded by public donations. The organisation is also the driver of an innovative Water Safety Programme that provides essential drowning prevention resources where basic water safety and swimming skills resources are sorely lacking. Over the past year alone, over 905,000 children were educated in water safety, and almost 18,000 survival swimming lessons were presented – absolutely free.
“We are incredibly proud of our volunteers, who work tirelessly towards our vision of a water-safe nation by implementing our mission of preserving life and livelihoods on and around South African waters through education, drowning prevention, and rescue,” says NSRI Board Chairperson Jonathan Vellosa.
NSRI volunteers train to be able to respond to an incredibly diverse range of emergencies, from swift water and flooding to medical evacuations off ships. From assisting commercial trawlers to helping leisure yachts. The organisation mobilises for fishermen, swimmers, anglers, hikers, paddlers and surfers. It achieves its purpose of saving lives, changing lives, and creating futures through water safety education, survival swimming lessons and active rescue missions.
The annual NSRI AGM and Awards Ceremony is an opportunity for the organisation to acknowledge and honour the selflessness of individuals and stations in their pursuit of safety and saving lives.
“Each and every award recipient has gone the extra mile. These people care deeply about others and are prepared to do what is needed. They are the people who make our country so special, and we owe them a huge debt of gratitude,” said Brett Ayres.