A 58-year-old man died after being stung by bluebottles while swimming at the Strand near Cape Town late on Saturday afternoon, the City of Cape Town's Disaster Management said.
Roland Singh of Athlone suffered severe anaphylactic shock as a result of the stings. Although he was helped from the water by his friend, Ronald Andrew Kumar Singh, and lifeguards and given CPR by the lifeguards he could not be revived and died shortly afterwards.
Wilfred Solomons-Johannes, acting head of Cape Town's disaster operations centre, said a fatal allergic reaction to a blue bottle sting was extremely rare.
"A sensitive individual, who is prone to allergies, can have an extreme reaction to the toxins in the blue bottle's venom," he said.
"An allergic reaction can lead to fever, heart and lung failure."
In another incident a 36-year-old man from Elsies River drowned in the tidal pool at the Harmony Park Resort near Gordon's Bay.
Solomons-Johannes said witnesses saw Osbourne De Morne swimming in deep water. Another beachgoer brought him ashore where lifeguards initiated CPR but were unable to revive him.
In the morning a surfer rescued a nine-year-old boy who got into difficulty off Hout Bay beach. Mlami Busakwe from Khayelitsha was brought ashore by Danny Barnard of Hout Bay. The child, accompanied by his mother, was taken to Victoria Hospital for observation.
At Kogel Bay near Somerset West nine-year-old Keenan Fortuin of Elsies River was given CPR and revived after nearly drowning in the tidal pool.
The child was rescued by Law Enforcement & Specialised Services offices and members of the public. He was taken to Helderberg Hospital and later transferred to Tygerberg Hospital.
- Sapa/IOL
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