Lifeguards blamed

THE family of Poobalan Mari want the eThekwini Municipality to take action against its lifeguards at Brighton Beach. This comes after they allegedly refused to rescue Mari while he was drowning last Tuesday.

Mari, 59, from Welbedacht, was employed at Durban Solid Waste (DSW).

Dave Govindasamy, his brother, said Mari went to the beach with friends that afternoon.

“The friends told me he decided to go for a swim in the tidal pool. They all saw him dive into the pool. After a few minutes, they grew concerned because his head did not emerge from the water.

“They screamed out his name and still there was no sign of him. Realising he may have drowned, his friends ran to the lifeguards on duty for help.

“His friends claimed that the lifeguards told them they could not help because their shift had ended. The friends then ran toward the pool and dived into the water to look for him.”

Govindasamy said they found him and carried his body out of the water.

“The lifeguards tried to do CPR, and the ambulance services and police were called but it was too late. They could not save my brother. A relative informed me of his death. My brother was in good health. We grew up in Illovo and the beach was close, so we often swam.”

He said he hoped the municipality would investigate the matter.

“We want the municipality to be aware of what their staff are allegedly doing. We are approaching the festive season and the beaches are going to be crowded. We cannot afford for another family to face the pain we are going through. The municipality needs to investigate those lifeguards. They could have saved my brother.”

Mari was cremated at the Mobeni Heights Crematorium on Saturday.

Msawakhe Mayisela, eThekwini Municipality spokesperson, said: “The loss of any life will never be celebrated. The city investigates any concern brought to its attention.”

Constable Thenjiswa Ngcobo, a provincial police spokesperson, said an inquest had been opened.