Brad Geyser, NSRI Hout Bay station commander said: “On Saturday 27 MArch at 13h50 NSRI Hout Bay were activated by the Transnet National Ports Authority to launch to go to the assistance of the 60 foot Long Line fishing trawler Suleiman suffering one of her long line fishing ropes fouled around her propellers 35 nautical miles South West of Cape Point.
[ad#Google Adsense 125×125 Blog Post]”We launched our rescue craft MTU Nadine Gordimer and on arrival on-scene a tow-line was rigged and we began the effort of towing the vessel towards False Bay in 2.5 metre swells and a 35 knot South Easterly wind.
“Efforts by a commercial dive team to free the rope fouled around the propeller had been unsuccessful.
“NSRI Simonstown were activated at 15h45 and they launched their rescue craft Spirit of Safmarine III to rendezvous with the tow effort and to take over the tow nearer to Cape Point and to tow the vessel the final stretch to her home port at Kalk Bay Harbour (this will allow our Hout Bay NSRI rescue craft to be relieved from the tow to return to our rescue base in Hout Bay harbour).
“At 20h39 the Hout Bay NSRI rescue craft released her tow from the casualty vessel 10 nautical miles off Cape Point after we rendezvoused with NSRI Simonstown’s rescue craft and the tow-line was taken up by the NSRI Simonstown rescue craft and they are expected to bring the casualty vessel into Kalk Bay harbour at around midnight tonight.”
