DURBAN: Experienced Durban netter Goolam Fareed said the 2021 KZN sardine run reminds him of the biggest one experienced in the province, in the 1970s.
Fareed said there was a lot of activity along the Durban coastline and he has been netting on Durban beaches since last Thursday.
The netter said this year’s run reminded him of a huge sardine run experienced in Durban about 30 years ago.
“I think this year will be like the old sardine runs. This will be like the old times. In the 1970s we had the biggest sardine run and it looks like it will be the same story here,” he said.
Fareed predicted that the sardine run would last for several more months.
‘We have a lot of fish coming through. Transkei is still full, with a lot of activity with birds and dolphins, whales and everything. We have a long run,” he said.
He added that he would be netting non-stop in Durban if the weather permits.
Angler Sadeem Ahmed Rana, who often works with sardine netters, said more than 100 crates were netted at Addington and uShaka beaches on Sunday.
The Mercury reported today that sardines were also netted at Durban New Beach yesterday morning.
Echoing Fareed’s comment, Rana said the 2021 sardine run is the “best” run in the past 30 years.
“Even better than last year’s. Normally, by the end of July, it starts getting quiet if it starts early. But this year, even in August, we are getting plenty of fish – especially in Durban,” he said.
He further explained that netting sardines has been a tradition and provides a livelihood for many families.
“The netting process has high costs and expenses but, at the end of the day, it feeds many households and provides employment for many individuals,” said Rana.
During the unrest in July, when KZN experienced a food shortage, as some stores had been destroyed and others could not restock, angler and netter Jace Govender rallied his fellow netters, to provide free sardines to needy residents.
In a Facebook post, Govender said they had caught five large nets from July 16 to 18.
“It's been three amazing days, that the team got out and were netting for KZN, and hopefully we got as much free sardines as possible out to the guys all over KZN,” he said.
THE MERCURY