Sarah Smith, NSRI St Francis Bay station commander, said:
At 05h15, Wednesday, 10th January, NSRI St Francis Bay duty crew were activated by the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) following reports to NSRI Port Elizabeth of a man suspected to be overboard the fishing vessel Maryke.
It appears that the alarm had been raised at 05h00 by the skipper after crew noticed the adult fisherman, believed to be from Humansdorp, missing off the boat off-shore of Aasvogelspunt, 30 nautical miles South East of St Francis Bay.
Maryke and 3 other fishing vessels had reportedly begun a search.
The sea rescue craft Spirit of St Francis II was launched and on arrival on the scene joined in a search and assisted in sweeping line search patterns and just after 08h00 an SA Air Force 15 Squadron Charlie Flight helicopter, with 2 NSRI Port Elizabeth rescue swimmers aboard, joined the search operation and NSRI St Francis Bay crew and SA National Park rangers searched along the shoreline.
Despite an extensive air, sea and shoreline search operation no sign of the missing fisherman has been found and Police have taken over an ongoing search operation and investigation into the incident.
Alan Straton
Latest posts by Alan Straton (see all)
- Why Digital Equity Is South Africa’s New Frontier for Women’s Empowerment – By Matebe Chisiza-Asukile and Natasha Mboyisa - 25 September 2026
- New Champions Rise at the 2026 Street Lines Skate Tournament - 23 September 2026
- When Manufacturers Have a ‘Beef’ Then Both Suffer - 23 September 2026
- How Much Are You Worth per Year to Your Bank? - 23 September 2026
- Better Business Processes. Stronger Workplace Skills. Smarter AI. Greater Business Productivity. - 23 September 2026
