Thousands of holidaymakers returned home safely after a day at the beach this festive season, but it ended in tragedy for more than 33 families after their loved ones drowned along South Africa’s coastline.
In Pennington on the KwaZulu-Natal south coast, desperate loved ones waited on the shore as search and rescue teams combed the waters after a group of five got into trouble in the water on New Year’s Day. They even demanded that the beach be closed during the search, leading to police and Umdoni mayor Mbali Cele-Luthuli intervening. Two people from the group are still missing.
The Pennington community is reeling in shock. “The atmosphere is sad. People can’t believe this could happen here,” said Tidy Towns Pennington’s Viv Sandwith.
Lifesaving South Africa board member Dhaya Sewduth said 21 people drowned in December and 12 since the start of the year. The death toll is expected to climb as missing swimmers can only be declared deceased when they are found.
Sewduth said while official statistics from the festive season would only be available after January 15, preliminary reports showed that there were 86 serious rescues in November, 43 in December and 58 since the start of 2026.
“The majority of drownings have been at unpatrolled or non-lifeguarded beaches where unsuspecting victims were caught in rip currents such as in Pennington and Blue Water Bay. Bathers also drowned or went missing before or after lifesaving duties. There were incidents in Ballito, Strand, Pennington and the Umkomaas mouth.
“Lifeguards reported many individuals who reeked of alcohol, but the true evidence will emerge in post-mortem autopsy reports of the deceased. We would assume that most of the victims were not knowledgeable about ocean conditions and were not competent swimmers,” said Sewduth.
He added that the lack of supervision of children was “a huge problem”.
“The age demographic of 5-17 years in South Africa is almost 30% of annual drowning stats.”
Sewduth said while the numbers of rescues were still coming in from the voluntary clubs, LSA estimated that the figure could “tally in the thousands”.
“If one has to look at the visuals of the crowds on the popular beaches, one would see thousands of bathers in the water each day at all of the bathing beaches. Lifesavers usually practise what is called preventative or proactive lifesaving. They patrol the inshore behind the bathers on their rescue crafts, jet skis, rubber duckies, and constantly keep the bathers at bay. When they see someone in difficulty, they get to them before they get into serious trouble and help them out.”
“That is why, on most days, there are no drownings on beaches despite the fact that there are thousands of bathers,” said Sewduth.
Initially, a drowning will be a rescue. Once the victim has been below water for around 30 minutes, sadly it becomes a recovery. Due to the lack of resources and the likelihood of finding a body at sea, an intensive search effort will only last several days. Thereafter, human remains are more likely to wash ashore than be found.
— IPSS spokesperson Samantha Meyrick
Like the National Sea Rescue Institute, IPSS Search & Rescue sees the other side of a fun day at the beach.
IPSS spokesperson Samantha Meyrick said search and rescue operations are usually initiated when her team receives a call from a member of the public, who has witnessed a drowning.
She explained that the search operation was “dependent on the situation”.
“An intensive search for a drowning victim will last two to three days before we start scaling back, beach patrols and members of the public keeping an eye out will continue. Initially, a drowning will be a rescue. Once the victim has been below water for around 30 minutes, sadly it becomes a recovery. Due to the lack of resources and the likelihood of finding a body at sea, an intensive search effort will only last several days. Thereafter, human remains are more likely to wash ashore than be found,” she said.
As an NPO that relies on volunteers, it is difficult to sustain an intensive search over a long period due to volunteers needing to return to work and other obligations.
“Long days can be both emotionally and physically exhausting. Other operational issues are often something as simple as shelter from the sun, food and refreshments. In some cases, the community is absolutely amazing, providing those refreshments throughout the period that we may be on a scene,” she said.
Tidy Towns Pennington, together with a few shop owners and locals, provided lifeguards with lunch every Friday for the last six months.
“This week, we’ve augmented that with a few extra meals and a care package that we’ve put together for them. They have been exemplary — they work really hard, their attention to detail and passion for their duties have been incredible. No stone has been left unturned in their pursuit to find survivors or remains,” said Sandwith.
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