DURBAN - A massive search was mounted for a missing German scuba diver on Wednesday. The remains of his body, believed to have been bitten by a shark, were found.
The 68-year-old diver did not have any family in South Africa.
“According to a group of divers on a charter scuba dive, they had been surfacing from a dive when the man disappeared,” said Craig Lambinon, National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) spokesperson.
His remains had been taken into the care of the Forensic Pathology Services.
“The priority now is to get hold of his family,” he said, with the assistance of the Department of International Relations.
Several private and charter boats joined the search around the Northern Pinnacle, Protea Banks, on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, about 10km off shore.
Transnet National Ports Authority, the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre and the Telkom Maritime Radio Services helped co-ordinate the search.
“An extensive drift pattern and sweeping line search operation was conducted using the three sea rescue craft, the police search and rescue boat, private boats, fishing boats and charter boats, while the police divers conducted a scuba dive search.”
The remains of the body were found by the crew of a private fishing boat and taken to shore by a sea rescue craft.