Emotional relatives visit wreck as one more fisherman’s body found

THE beach at Sunset Rock was yesterday lined with emotional family members who visited the wreck of the Maredon, the chokka boat that capsized and ran aground near Cape St Francis on Sunday.

Shortly before they arrived at the beach, the body of Mbongeni Gift Zulu, 43, of Jeffreys Bay, one of the eight missing fishermen, was found near Blue Horizon Bay.

This brings the confirmed death toll to two, while six others are still unaccounted for.

Seven of the boat’s 16 crew members survived the horrific incident.

But family members at the wrecksite were sad, angry and confused as they believe more should be done to look for their loved ones, whether they are dead or alive.

“Why are there not more divers out in the water? Where are the search teams that are supposed to patrol along the rocks? Why does it feel like no one cares about finding our brothers,” Wellington Dlamini, of Jeffreys Bay, wanted to know.

Dlamini, 55, had two brothers working onboard the Maredon, part of the Balobi fishing company’s fleet, when it capsized.

Scelo Dlamini, 30, was among those rescued from the beach, while Sihle Dlamini, 37, is still missing.

“Why have they not taken the whole boat apart? We only see one hole cut in the hull, but what if there are bodies somewhere else in the boat? I want to be sure they have done everything possible to find my brother.

“At this stage we have so many questions, and no one to give us answers. Not the police, the search teams or Balobi have been able to give us any clarity on what happened out there.”

Dlamini said his surviving brother was still extremely traumatised and broke down crying when they asked him about what happened onboard the vessel.

“Our family is still struggling with the news that one of my brothers is missing, and everyone is very worried about the one who survived. We are not sure if he will ever recover.”

Feziwe Sinekelo, 34, struggled to contain her emotions when asked about her younger brother, Zamikhaya Sinekelo, 32. He is also still unaccounted for.

“Our parents aren’t alive anymore, we have two younger brothers, and Zamikhaya was our breadwinner. I have no idea what we are going to do without him,” she said.

“We don’t expect to find him alive anymore, it’s been too long now. But we need to find his body.”

Mvelisi Elliot Ncanywa and Paseka Piki, from Humansdorp, as well as three other men who have not yet been identified but who are believed to be from Port Elizabeth, are also still missing. — DDC