Jean du Plessis, NSRI Still Bay station commander, said:
At 14h26, Thursday, 6 August, NSRI Still Bay duty crew were activated following reports of a kite-surfer in difficulty approximately 500 meters off-shore of Still Bay harbour and eye-witnesses confirmed that he being swept out to sea.
Our duty crew responded to our sea rescue base and the sea rescue craft Mercantile Spirit was launched.
On arrival on the scene a 20 year old male, from Cape Town, was located and recovered onto our sea rescue craft with his kite-boarding gear.
He was brought safely ashore and although he was tired from being in the water he was not injured and he required no further assistance.
On Wednesday, 5 August, at 14h55, NSRI Still Bay duty crew were activated to assist Cape Nature who had initiated a search along the coast for a 76 year old local man who was overdue from returning home after going cycling earlier in the day.
NSRI crew joined Cape Nature officers in a search at Geelkrans Nature Reserve and at Pauline Bohnen Nature Reserve.
WC Government Health EMS and the SA Police Services were activated.
NSRI crew and Cape Nature officers located the man on a cycling trail in the Geelkrans Nature Reserve and he had sustained serious injuries from a fall off his bicycle.
NSRI medics treated the man and an EMS all terrain ambulance attended at the scene and he was taken into the care of EMS paramedics and he was transported to a Mossel Bay hospital in a serious but stable condition.
An update from hospital staff confirms that the man is in a stable condition and he has begun a long road to recovering from serious injuries that were sustained.
NSRI commend the swift response of all involved.
