Fatal Shark Attack in J-Bay

A SHARK REPORTED TO BE OVER 4m HAS KILLED A SWIMMER AT LOWER POINT NEAR ALBATROS BEACH IN JEFFREYS BAY. 

Picture: Facebook

The man has been named as 74 year old local resident, Burgert van der Westhuizen. 

The avid open water swimmer had started training again for the up coming open water swim season, but swam regularly as apart of his normal routine. He always parked his vehicle at the petrol station and walked down to the beach entering the water from Boneyards across from the Checkers. His aim was to swim to the next beach break that was to the East towards Kabeljouws at Albatross and he was about two thirds of the way when the shark attacked him. He was then pulled further out to sea. 

Terry Olivier was in his kayak and made his way over to the scene finding Burgert lying face-down in the water. The shark was thrashing around, taking bites out of the body and Terry tried fending it off with his paddle but his attempts were in vein due to it's sheer size. The shark then disappeared underwater with the torso and Terry quickly headed back to shore getting himself out of the water and out of a very dangerous situation.  

There were several witnesses to the attack, one of them, a Member of the Supertubes Surfing Foundation, Allison, said that her son Zach witnessed the attack and told his mother that he saw the shark was "lifting the man up and down out the water." Allison rushed to the beach, grabbed her binoculars and said that she could see that there was a lot of blood everywhere. "I have seen fins in the water before, but this time you could see a lot of the sharks body. I could see the man's blue swimming cap." 

Some first believed it was 2 sharks because of it's length but the local media later reported that it was just one shark. It is not clear what breed was involved but locals and some officials are certain it was a Great White. 

The National Sea Rescue Institute said that a volunteer rescue crew was sent out to the scene at around 11:30am local time.  "On arrival on-scene remains of a body, believed to be those of an adult male, have been recovered from the water and handed into the care of the police and the forensic pathology services." 

According to a statement by the Kouga Municipality the beach was to remain closed for the weekend: “We will be re-assessing the situation on Monday.”  The Municipality reminded people that if they entered the water, they were doing so at their own risk.

This is the first fatal shark attack at Jeffries Bay which is hailed one of the top 5 surf spots in the world.

According to the International Shark Attack file at the Florida Museum of Natural History, there were 4 shark attacks in South Africa last year, three of which were fatal.


Everyone at the House of Biltong and the Daily HoB would like to extend their deepest condolences to Burgert van der Westhuizen's family and friends for his tragic passing.

Sources:

Reuters UK

AOL

SKY News

St Francis Chronicle

WaveScape

Joost bid to stop book dismissed

Joost was in court today (Friday) to hear the final outcome of his court case against the publication of a tell-all book about his stormy marriage to Amor Vittone.

Judge Bertelsmann stated that prior restraint of a publication could only be granted in extraordinary circumstances because it was a drastic interference in freedom of speech, "It should only be ordered if there was a grave risk of substantial injustice."

The case was dismissed due to the fact that Joost had failed to establish any right to such drastic inroads into freedom of expression. He went on to say that there was no allegation in the papers that the book contained lies and it must be therefore be concluded that Mr Van der Westhuizen was trying to suppress the truth.

The author of the book, Joost and Amor – Agter die Skerms (Behind the Scenes) is journalist and deputy editor of Heat magazine, Gavin Prins. Prins' defense was largely based on the fact that the relationship between Joost and Amor has been widely publicized in the media as well as by Joost himself via Twitter and that basically there was nothing much else he could tell people that they don't already know. 

Joost's lawyer said that the publication of the book could adversely effect his declining health but Bertelsmann said there was no exceptional evidence to support such a claim. A report issued by a neurologist stated that the stress would worsen Joost's condition but Bertelsmann said that there was no evidence that the neurologist had even examined Joost before writing the report - Therefore he did not qualify as an expert witness.

 "The applicant falls into the category of celebrities that can no longer expect that their private lives remain private because they themselves have made it public, "The fact is that Joost's life and illness were well known and he could not complain if it was repeated in another publication."  He added that Joost's reliance on privacy was negated by his own past action.

"The applicant has rightfully earned the respect and esteem flowing from his past achievements.
"He is entitled to understanding and empathy ... He is entitled to support even in the aftermath of scandal.
"He is to be admired for the way in which he is dealing with his devastating illness and reaching out to others.
"...But he is not entitled to stop publication of the book ... because he invited the media to share his life.".

Judge Bartelsmann concluded by saying that there was no question that the publication was of significant importance to Prins and the publishers and to the fundamental right to freedom of expression.
______________

Joost and Amor's marriage broke down after the appearance of a sex tape in which Joost was shown to be using cocaine. After a very public battle with his wife regarding their separation, children and finances,  Amor confirmed in an interview with Heat magazine in August that Joost was moving back into the family home with herself and their 2 children.  

"I’m busy transforming the kids’ playroom into a bedroom for him. Joost can’t get up the stairs anymore, so we want to make it as easy for him as possible." - Amor

Sadly, doctors have said that he will soon need to be on oxygen and won't be able to move around as often.

UPDATE: Female prison officer rescued

UPDATE: 03/10/2013 - 10.47AM

The female prison officer was rescued last night by the special forces unit when they were finally able to overpower the 4 prisoners holding her hostage. The female officer was unhurt after the 13 hour ordeal and has thanked everyone involved in getting her out safely. As a matter of precaution she was taken to the Rosepark Hospital for a medical check up and treatment.

The 13 hour ordeal started when the prisoners grabbed the officer and pulled her into one of the cells with them and locked the door. Male guards tried to pull her free as she was being dragged away but both were attacked and stabbed in their arms with what they now know to be pieces of scissors. Both the male officers were treated at the scene and their condition was deemed 'not serious'.

There was minimal force used to free the officer and no shots were fired. The hostage takers were arrested and will be charged with kidnapping and attempted murder of the 2 G4S employees who were injured earlier in the day. The prisoners are currently serving sentences for rape, murder and robbery.

A good outcome for all involved but apparently this is not the first time this has happened at this exact prison. Hopefully measurements will be put in place to make sure this never happens again but somehow this seems highly unlikely - as long as there are staff shortages, this problem will no doubt keep rearing it's head.

____________________

02/10/2013 - BREAKING STORY: What do we know?

• The female guard is being held by 4 prisoners
• No demands have been made as yet. 
• SAPS Special Task Force along with security company G4S are working on her release.
• 3 other people have been injured
• Many people are blaming the shortage of staff for this incident 

Background

Everything seems to be sketchy at the moment but apparently there were over 300 police and Prison Civil Rights Union members dismissed earlier this year and because of the staff shortage the woman guard was encouraged to help out with guarding the prisoners. G4S has said that all it's staff are fully trained for hostage situations and that they also have provisions in place for handling hostage scenarios.

G4S says that they are doing everything in their power to rescue their employee.

We really hope it's over soon for that poor woman and hope that she gets back safely to her family...

... developing story

66 Bags of dagga, 30 donkeys and 13 men... Only in South Africa

South African Police have arrested 13 men using 30 donkeys to smuggle 66 bags of dagga through the mountains from Lesotho into South Africa... What sounds more like the opening lines of a joke was actually a huge joint operation with both the mounted units of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife and the SAP with the arrest being made in the uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park.

This was one of the biggest dagga busts to go down in KwaZulu-Natal with the estimated street value of around R3.6 million - A 9mm handgun and eight rounds of ammunition were also seized.

 

Colonel Jay Naicker, the police spokesman, said: “There is quite a problem in that area regarding dagga and guns as our members often get shot at by men with AKs...” he went on to say that they had “arrested one man with an unlicensed firearm while another got away. The guy we arrested had a bulletproof vest on. That shows he was prepared...”  

Aged between 25 and 33, the 13 men will appear in the Bergville Magistrate’s Court on Friday for possession of dagga, intent to sell drugs and illegal possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.  

Some of the 66 bags had been slung over the donkeys and the rest were carried by some of the men. The police have confirmed that the donkey's were in a rather poor state of health but said that they were all being examined by a vet. Sadly not all of the donkey's make it over to the South African side as many fall off cliffs or get left behind by their handlers if they are deemed to be sick or struggling.

Once the smugglers have arrived in SA, the dagga is offloaded and the donkeys are left behind. It is not unusual that some of them (the donkey's) make their way back to Lesotho on their own. 

The provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Mmamonnye Ngobeni congratulated the unit on another successful operation in the area and she said that they were "concerned that such a large consignment of drugs was being brought into the province... We will be working closely with prosecutors to ensure that we deal decisively with these criminals. Their actions are contributing to the crimes in KZN. We will continue to monitor activities on this known drug route."

Last month saw a couple attempting to smuggle the biggest drug consignment into the country but were arrested in Copesville, Pietermaritzburg - they used donkeys and horses to transport compressed balls of dagga over the border. 

South African man and his Cock arrested in Paris

No one is really sure what possessed 51 year old South African, Steven Cohen, to dress up as a bird wearing 8-inch heels, with a cock on a leash tied to his... um... penis... and put himself on display right next to the Eiffel Tower, one of the busiest tourist spots in Paris.

He gave the tourists an eyeful but his dancing and prancing lasted all of 10 minutes before he was arrested, interrogated, made to provide a DNA sample and undergo a psychiatric evaluation. After being held for a few hours, Steven was eventually bailed and will appear in court on 16 December 2013 charged with Sexual Exhibitionism.

His lawyer, Agnes Tricoire said that she was outraged that her client was thrown in jail and said that he “wanted to express his personal situation, in which he divides his life between two countries, his native South Africa and France, where he currently lives,”  Lawyer Agnes went on to add that she thought his arrest was disgraceful because France was silencing it's artists. When asked about the bird, she did not say how it helped to illustrate his situation nor did she say if Steven was referencing a Jewish custom of using the chicken to absolve past sins ahead of the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur. She did however tell the Metro that the cock's name was Frank. 

French papers reportedly quoted Steven as saying: “It's the Day of Reconciliation in South Africa, but the day of judgment for me,” he then went on to explain that the message of his work was “about being pulled in many directions simultaneously." 

"Frank is a feisty cock and wonderfully capable of deciding the choreography."

Steven was born in 1962 in SA and now lives in Lille, France. He stages interventions in public as well as in theater and gallery spaces and intends to bring attention to everything that is belittled in society. He started by bringing attention to himself and his identity as a gay, Jewish man - often referring to himself in interviews as a Jewish Gay Monster.

Steven graduated with a BA from Wits University, then studied at the Ruth Prowse School of Art in Woodstock, Cape Town. One of his best known 'performances' was in 2001/2 called "Chandelier" where Steven dressed in some unstable and revolving heels, wore a lit up tutu made of a chandelier and went into the Johannesburg Township, Newton to mingle and engage with the local residents.

No stranger to the inside of a police car, Steven has consistently been arrested for his shocking, nude public 'performances'. He has performed at places like Lyon's Holocaust Memorial as well as Ground Zero in New York.

Last year he performed at Avignon wearing nothing but anvil-shaped shoes, a girdle, yellow body paint and the Star of David painted on his forehead. In response to a question regarding his use of Jewish symbols, Steven said “A lot of what I do is to protest Fascism, I was born in South Africa because my parents fled Fascism. They would have been exterminated had they stayed.”

In an interview published on a South African gallery's website Steven sums himself up quite brutally by saying: 

"I never really fit any traditions -- African, European, male, Jewish or queer; it's actually really quite similar everywhere in the world. Except that in Europe people try to observe the sounds I am making, to hear the images. In South Africa I am quickly dismissed as a drag queen, a shock artist, a fraud, an arsehole."

On his own website, Steven says:
“I don’t know what the f*** performance art is, yet I’m brilliant at it.”

SA sailors take Bronze at World Championships

South Africa's Olympic sailors got back onto the podium and claimed bronze in Hyeres, France this weekend at the SB20 World Championships!

Roger Hudson, Asenathi Jim along with Sibu Sizatu and Wadi Xamimpi claimed 2 race wins - a second place and 3 third places during the competition over the weekend in Hyeres.

The SB20 world title was won by Team Briton with Ukraine taking second place.

Asenathi Jim, Roger Hudson, Wadi Xamimpi and Sibu Sizatu

The achievements keep racking up with amazing results for South Africans in this type of competition, competing on 20-foot signle design kneel-boats.

Last week saw Hudson mounting the podium for the fifth time in six years and Xamimpi has now claimed 3 medals in four championships with Jim taking 2 medals in 3 championships.  

Asenathi Jim, Roger Hudson

The South African's return home after an exhausting and strenuous time competing abroad with Jim and Sizatu having both competed in the 470 Jnr World Championships - finishing 16th out of 59 and then Jim and Hudson claimed 35th position out of 117 boats in the 470 Open World Championships. This was followed by Jim and Sizatu taking 7th position at the 470 European Junior Championships in Wales.  

Asenathi Jim, Roger Hudson and Sibu Sizatu

Congratulations Boys! You make us Proud!

Sources: 
470.org
SouthAfrican.Info

South Africa's "Magnificent Eleven" Salvage the Costa Concordia

The huge task of salvaging the Costa Concordia was masterminded by Nick Sloane, a South African salvage expert, with the help of 10 colleagues aboard a command and control barge. 

Franco Gabrielli, the Itallian official in overall charge of the project said: 

"We've nicknamed them the Magnificent Eleven!"

Nick Sloane - The South African behind the operation:

Read it all here!