Africa-Press – South-Africa. The chapel inside the Navy Museum in Simon’s Town was lit with candles as people arrived with flowers in memory of the three sailors who died at sea on Wednesday.
Tragedy struck when a massive wave knocked seven navy officers off submarine SAS Manthatisi on Wednesday afternoon.
Two people were killed and the third fatality was extricated from the vessel, the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) confirmed.
Five crew members, including a senior officer in a critical condition, were treated in hospital.
On Thursday, Slangkop Beach, near where the incident occurred, was eerily quiet.
The SA Navy said the submarine was on its way to Cape Town’s V&A Waterfront to be used in its Mini Navy Festival scheduled for Saturday.
It was to be among the craft that would be open to the public during Heritage Day celebrations, which will run from Saturday to Monday.
As Commander-in-Chief of South Africa’s armed forces, President Cyril Ramaphosa conveyed his condolences to the loved ones of the victims.
“My thoughts and prayers go out to the families, friends, commanders and colleagues of the crew members we have lost,” he said.
“We wish the injured personnel a full recovery from the physical and psychological trauma they experienced during this tragedy.”
Meanwhile independent defence analyst Helmoed-Romer Heitman told News24 the tragedy had struck during a vertical replenishment exercise.
He defended the exercise, saying the argument that the navy should not train in rough seas was not valid.
“In a war or if a seaman is critically ill or injured, you have to do it in rough seas. You cannot wait for that to change,” he said.
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