TWO PEOPLE, INCLUDING an Irish woman, have died in South Africa after a yacht they were sailing in ran aground.
The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed today that they were providing consular assistance to the family of a woman who had died in the Western Cape, a province in the south-west of the country.
According to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) of South Africa, two people died when a yacht ran ground on the coast of the Western Cape in the early hours of this morning.
The website states that three people were onboard the yacht, which was believed to be sailing between the town of Langebaan and Cape Town.
An Irish man (66) made it to shore after the yacht ran aground and managed to raise the alarm. He was uninjured.
Following this, rescuers found the yacht broken up among rocks on the shoreline.
The bodies of an Irish woman (49) and a Scottish man (61) were recovered. Both had been Western Cape residents – as is the man who survived.
It is not known at this time what caused the yacht to run aground or if it had capsized before it ran aground. The South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) will be investigating the incident.
Police are also investigating the incident.
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