Edited Bev Mortimer: A Patensie man trapped in a truck on a low-lying bridge over the swollen Gamtoos River was saved by Eastern Cape NSRI volunteers on Friday this week.
NSRI’s St Francis Bay’s, deputy station commander, Louwrens Bezuidenhout, said at just after 7.30 pm on 18 Septembe, the St Francis Bay NSRI duty crew were activated by a request for assistance from a farmer, in Patensie. The farmer reported a truck was trapped on a low-lying bridge on a farm road across the Gamtoos River, between Patensie and Hankey. And the driver needed to be rescued.
NSRI EOC (Emergency Operations Centre) were alerted and NSRI Jeffreys Bay duty crew were activated to assist. The SAPS, EC Government Health EMS rescue squad, and Smart Security were activated to respond.
All NSRI stations involved were: NSRI – Station 21, St Francis Bay. Station 37, Jeffreys Bay. Station 6, Gqeberha, Station 7, East London, and NSRI VSC (Volunteer Support Centre).
The local St Francis Bay duty crew dispatched a private vehicle with NSRI rescue swimmers. NSRI JBay dispatched NSRI rescue swimmers and an NSRI CROC (small floating rescue craft) in an NSRI rescue vehicle.
NSRI Gqeberha, also assisted by dispatching NSRI Gqeberha, NSRI East London and NSRI VSC (Volunteer Support Centre) rescue swimmers in private vehicles and an NSRI rescue vehicle. The swimmers were at that time doing a regional training exercise. The SAPS Search and Rescue, Water Policing and Diving Service, (WPDS) was placed on alert. On arrival at the bridge it was found the driver of the truck was en route to collect farmed citrus fruit at a local farm. Am dthe the truck became trapped on a low-lying bridge while crossing the Gamtoos River on a farm road.
The bridge was swamped from recent heavy rains but also the bridge in question was swamped by heavy rainfall since May this year, causing the roadway and bridge to be slippery. When the truck failed to arrive on schedule the farmer went in search for the truck and found it trapped in the river, on the low-lying bridge. He raised the alarm.
The 30 year-old driver from PE was trapped in the cab of the truck, uninjured, but unable to escape because of the fast flowing swollen river at cab height around the truck.
NSRI rescue swimmers set up a technical rope pulley system to the truck and in a swift ‘water technical rescue operation’, involving rescue swimmers wading through swollen fast flowing water, using anchor ropes, with the NSRI CROC .
The driver was secured in a life-jacket and in a 3-hour swift water technical rescue operation, hampered by the fast flowing swollen river, rescue swimmers rescued the man bringing him to safety securely on the NSRI CROC.
The man was medically assessed by EMS paramedics and then transported to a hospital for further medical evaluation in the care of EMS paramedics and he is expected to make a full recovery.
NSRI rescue crews returned to base at 1 am.
The SAPS are investigating the circumstances of the incident. A heavy vehicle recovery team is also finding ways to recover the truck when the swollen river subsides.
The swift response by all and the coordinated efforts of the technical swift water rescue operation are to be commended, the NSRI says.
St Francis Chronicle 