Port Elizabeth - A man who drowned and his friend were dared to jump off the Shark Rock Pier, Port Elizabeth, for a R100 incentive, Beeld newspaper reported on Saturday.
“It was clear that neither of the men thought for a second that it was dangerous to jump from the pier,” Jennifer Isaacs, an eyewitness to the incident, was quoted as saying.
She said when she arrived on the pier on Thursday, the two men were already in front of the wooden railings on the end of the pier.
“Their friend encouraged them with the R100,” she said.
The men jumped in shortly after each other.
On Saturday, Warrant Officer Alwin Labans said the body of a 17-year-old was found close to the pier.
“The body of the man who jumped and went missing was discovered on Friday morning after he and a friend dared one another to jump off the pier,” he said.
He could not confirm the Beeld report on the R100 incentive.
On Friday, National Sea Rescue Institute spokesman Craig Lambinon the first man began struggling in the water after he jumped from the pier.
His 25-year-old friend dived in after him. However, while bystanders rescued the first man, his friend was swept to sea. - Sapa