The disappearance at sea of two men from a small fishers’ town outside of Atlantis has left the community shaken.
Faadiel Groenewald, 27, and Wilfred Swiers are amongst the 11 men who are still lost at sea after their boat sank on Friday.
The crew of 20 men were on board Sea Harvest’s FV Lepanto, which sank kilometres offshore from Hout Bay.
Nine of the seamen managed to get into a lifeboat and were rescued the same night.
The family of Groenewald, who is still missing, says the community of Pella has been supporting them through this tough time.
The father of one left his one-month old daughter with his girlfriend.
The woman says: “He went to work [last] Tuesday but when he came home, he said that there was something wrong with the vessel and it had to be taken in for maintenance. He went back to work on Friday and was supposed to leave for seven days.
“On Friday afternoon before 5pm, people came to tell us that something happened to the boat. They said they were missing.
“Ever since the news broke, the community members have stood by us. We have been praying for his return. I know he is still alive, he will come back to us.”
On the other side of the community, the Swiers family says they are devastated but hopeful.
“The God we pray to is full of miracles and all we have is hope,” a relative said.
After hearing about the incident, a concerned resident, Portia Gabriels, said she wanted her 24-year-old son who is currently at sea to come home.
“I’m a mom of a fisherman and I am now scared that he is out there.”
Sea Harvest spokesperson Anthea Abrahams says the vessel went for mandatory service.
“She had an excellent safety track record with zero reportable safety incidents in the last five years.”
The South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) said the search for the missing crew started on Friday afternoon after a distress call was received by the Maritime Rescue Coordinating Centre based at the SAMSA Centre for Sea Watch & Response in Cape Town, of a fishing trawler, the FV Lepanto, taking water rapidly and sinking fast.
On Sunday the search for the missing men was called off.
SAMSA said: “Unfortunately, even with the large number of vessels on-scene, none of the missing persons were found nor any undone life jackets.”
South African Deep-Sea Trawling Industry Association chairman Innocent Dwayi extended their condolences to the families affected by the tragedy.
“The loss of lives and the impact on the fishing community are deeply felt, and we stand by Sea Harvest and their affected employees and families in their time of grief.
“We are grateful for the courageous efforts of the nine surviving fishermen who launched an emergency raft and demonstrated remarkable bravery in the face of extreme danger.”
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde and Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis visited the families of the missing fishermen on Monday.
“Ten of the missing men are from Cape Town, with one from Malmesbury. We honour and remember these fishermen. We are praying for their families,” Winde said.
Sea Harvest’s management assured the Premier that its investigation into the incident would be “exhaustive”.