Cape Town - The body that remained missing at Gouritzmond on the South Cape Coast after a fishing vessel that carried seven fishermen capsized into the water on Tuesday has been recovered.
The man, whose identity has not been revealed, is now the fifth dead person out of the seven.
The police diving unit, together with the search party from Mossel Bay, have recovered the body, which remained missing after a fishing vessel sank at Gouritzmond on Tuesday.
According to police spokesperson Christopher Spies the teams began to search in the early hours of today and the unknown man's body was retrieved from the water at about 12.30 in the afternoon.
Preliminary investigation into the case revealed that police were alerted to the incidents at about 4pm, shortly after a fisherman's vessel sank with all seven men inside.
Upon the police’s arrival they found four men declared dead by medical personnel on scene. Two other men were taken to a nearby hospital for medical care while this one was missing at the time.
Spies said Albertinia police opened an inquest docket after the bodies were retrieved from the ocean at Gouritz on Tuesday.
“Formal identification of all the deceased has yet to be finalised. Investigation into the circumstances surrounding this matter continues,” said Spies.