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- Speeding is believed to have caused a Gauteng man's car to end up in the Hartbeespoort Dam, leading to his death.
- His body was found inside his car in the dam on Tuesday.
- Police are still tracing the man's family.
Speeding is believed to have caused a Gauteng man's car to end up in Hartbeespoort Dam in the North West, leading to his death.
Arthur Crewe, National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) station commander at Hartbeespoort Dam, said a Strategic Response and Rescue Unit (SRU) was alerted on Tuesday at 12:43. This followed eyewitness reports of a vehicle submerged in the dam, between Snake Park and the Hartbeespoort Dam bridge, News24 previously reported.
The body of a man was found inside the vehicle.
North West police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Amanda Funani told Netwerk24 that the police suspected that the man might have been speeding.
The man seemingly lost control of his vehicle, causing it to leave the road and roll into the dam, she adding, saying that no foul play was suspected.
The man's name has not been released because police were reportedly still trying to contact his family in Gauteng.
The body of a man was recovered from a car found submerged in #HartbeespoortDam on Tuesday. https://t.co/PhfrSZvvH8#NSRI #Station25 #SavingLivesOnSouthAfricanWaters
— Sea Rescue South Africa (@NSRI) July 7, 2020
On Wednesday, Crewe said: "SRU members, who are also NSRI Hartbeespoort Dam crew members, were on the dam at the time on an SRU rescue craft and they responded to the scene to investigate."
The South African Police Service (SAPS) and Hartbeespoort Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) were also alerted.
"On arrival on the scene, a vehicle was found submerged in the water. NSRI and SRU rescue swimmers free-dived on the vehicle and a safety line was attached to the submerged vehicle from a towing services vehicle.
"The rescue team, while free-diving on the vehicle, was able to break into the vehicle and the body of a man was recovered from the vehicle and taken on board the SRU rescue craft," Crewe added.
The body was taken to the NSRI rescue station, where HEMS paramedics declared him dead.
- Compiled by Riaan Grobler
