Siyavuya Mzantsi
and Lisa Isaacs
A GAUTENG couple’s visit to the Western Cape ended in tragedy when a 57-year- old woman was found dead in a rugged area of Abdul’s Kop mountain near Greyton yesterday.
Mary and Billy Long arrived in the Overberg town on Saturday and booked into the Old Potter’s Inn. On Monday, the couple went
for a walk on the mountain and were separated on their way back.
Billy Long fell and was injured, but remained in cellphone contact with his wife, Wilderness Search and Rescue (WSAR) spokesman Johann Marais said.
It is believed Mary went to get help. On Tuesday, people heard someone cry out and hours later rescuers located Billy. They then began a search for his spouse, Marais said.
“She fell when she attempted to scramble down the mountain when her husband fell. She was seriously injured and was found at 5.30pm,” said Marais, who described the couple as experienced mountaineers.
“They were in contact with each other, (but) the man and woman apparently got lost. While they were pretty close to each other, they started looking for different tracks to climb down,” Marais said.
He said Billy’s injuries were not “serious”.
“When he regained consciousness, he couldn’t contact his wife. After it became dark, people heard his cries for help. They had to wait for first light before the AMS helicopter flew him to safety,” he said.
Marais said Mary’s phone was tracked but could not be found. “One cannot speculate because she might have lost the phone or the battery might have died,” he said.
The search for Mary might have started in the wrong place.
A source at the Old Potter’s Inn said the couple were to have booked out today and travel to Cape Town to visit Billy’s sister.
Relatives flew from Johannesburg yesterday to comfort Billy, the source said.
“He (Billy) is still here, totally devastated. You don’t think that anything like this could happen. When they arrived they were carrying all their backpacks, thermal blankets. They said they had gone on a lot of hikes in areas like the Drakensberg. It is horrible.”
Greyton Tourism chairman John McGlashan said Mary’s body was found not far from where the couple were separated. “Helicopters were out searching for her. We had six teams of between four and six people looking.”
McGlashan said Billy assisted in finding his wife.
A distraught Billy showed pictures of his wife and of their trip together to others.
“They went on a hike at about 11.30am on Monday and didn’t come back.”
Richard Hess, a mountaineer and volunteer in the rescue effort, said the search began on Monday evening after they were alerted that a couple had gone for a walk and had not returned. They found Billy at 3am on Tuesday on a rocky ledge, he said.
“There are dangers, it is dark at night and they must have become disoriented with the unfamiliar terrain.”
Hess said the two had walked along a steep part of the mountain.