Festive Season Warning: NSRI Highlights Growing Drowning Risks for Children in South Africa
- Renewed calls for child water safety have been made by the National Sea Rescue Institute
- This comes after concerns over a rise in drowning and distress incidents involving children during the festive season
- The NSRI has raised concerns following several child-related water incidents this festive season
Justin Williams, a journalist at Briefly News since 2024, covers South Africa’s current affairs. Before joining Briefly News, he served as a writer and chief editor at Right for Education Africa’s South African chapter.
Source: Getty Images
Renewed appeals for child water safety have been issued by the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI). This follows growing concern over an increase in drowning and water-related distress incidents involving children during the festive season.
Increase in drowning incidents
NSRI spokesperson Andrew Ingram cautioned that drowning often happens quietly and within seconds. He stressed the importance of constant supervision when children are near water. He said the organisation had become increasingly concerned following several serious incidents reported over the holiday period.
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In the Eastern Cape, a 13-year-old boy from Mthatha was reported missing after disappearing in the surf at Hole-in-the-Wall beach last week, despite extensive search operations. At Muizenberg Beach earlier this week, two 18-year-old boys encountered difficulties in the water, with one rescued and hospitalised, while the other was swept away by a rip current and remains missing.
Another incident occurred on Saturday, 27 December 2025, at Miller’s Point in Cape Town, where two children aged seven and eight were rescued along with two adults. The children reportedly fell off a flotation device, and the adults were pulled into a rip current while attempting to assist them.
Ingram emphasised that many drowning incidents go unnoticed because they do not involve shouting or splashing. He warned that caregivers may not realise a child is in danger if they are not watching closely. He added that the NSRI strongly advises parents and guardians to keep children within arm’s reach at all times when around water.
Source: Getty Images
Other drowning incidents in SA
A teenager from Sonderwater in Sebokeng, Emfuleni, died after saving his friend from drowning during a fishing trip. One of his friends reported that they were fishing when one of them fell into the stream and drowned. The victim jumped into the stream and pulled his friends out. However, he slipped into the water when he tried to get back on the bank.
Two best friends, both aged 11, tragically drowned in a dam behind Mega City in Duduza on Thursday. The boys, who lived in the Zamane Section near the dam, had gone missing the previous afternoon after returning home from school. The boys changed out of their school uniforms and went out to play, but never returned home. Concerned relatives began searching for them late into the evening. A missing persons report was officially opened at the Duduza Police Station that night.
5 Gauteng pupils die in separate drowning incidents
In a related article, Briefly News reported that five pupils from different Gauteng schools died in August last year from drowning.
The learners were from Greenside High School, Tsakane Secondary School and Evaton Primary School.
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Source: Briefly News
