Cape Town – Police have resumed the search for a third missing person after a vehicle plunged into the Crocodile River near Kamagugu in Nelspruit over the weekend.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) Search and Rescue Team recovered two bodies from the river on Sunday. The deceased were identified as a 20-year-old man and a woman believed to be between the ages of 18 and 23.
On Tuesday, SAPS Search and Rescue officers, supported by a K9 search unit, returned to the area to continue the search operation for the third occupant who remains missing.
Police have confirmed that the missing person’s cellphone was recovered inside the vehicle after it was retrieved from the river.
According to IOL, the bodies of the two victims were found trapped inside a white SUV that had become submerged in the water. Rescue teams were forced to use specialised equipment, including the Jaws of Life, to gain access to the vehicle and recover the occupants.
As the search enters another day, the family of the missing person remains hopeful that he will be found alive.
Speaking to Laevelder, family spokesperson Thapelo Mogane expressed gratitude for the support and assistance the family has received during the search efforts.
“We are not hoping to recover a body, but we are hoping to find a person who is alive, who will come back and tell us what he saw and how God rescued him,” Mogane said.
The search operation remains ongoing as police and rescue teams continue combing the area for any sign of the missing man.
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Picture: Facebook/ Mweli Dj Masilela
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Compiled by Glaan Sibuyi
