Durban — A mother and her daughter survived a near drowning at a Durban beach on Saturday morning.
Netcare 911 spokesperson Shawn Herbst said that at 9.40am, Netcare 911 responded to a drowning on North Beach.
It is one of the 13 beaches the eThekwini Municipality said was reopened after extensive water testing.
Herbst said that reports indicate that a mother and daughter got into difficulty swimming.
EThekwini lifeguards who witnessed the swimmers in distress were quick to respond and managed to pull both swimmers to shore, Herbst said.
“When medics arrived on the scene, they found both patients on the beach. The mother was in a stable condition and declined any treatment, however, the 10-year-old child had ingested seawater and was in severe respiratory distress,” Herbst said.
“The young girl was treated on scene by Netcare 911 emergency care practitioners and once stabilised was transported to the hospital for further care.”
Last month, the bodies of a mother and her daughter were recovered by police following a report of a double drowning on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast.
According to police, the bodies were recovered on separate days after the mother and daughter were allegedly swept away by a wave.
Police spokesperson Lieutenant-Colonel Nqobile Gwala said that on Saturday, at 5pm, Scottburgh police were called to Preston Beach at Park Rynie over a drowning report.
Gwala said it is alleged that a mother and her daughter were at a pool when they were swept away by a wave.
“The mother’s body was found on the same day while the search for her five-year-old daughter continued, she was found on August 28, 2022,” Gwala said.
She said that an inquest docket was opened at Scottburgh police station and the matter is under investigation.
Daily News