A man who tried to find shelter from the cold and rain would have frozen to death, had it not been for observant security guards patrolling in Plettenberg Bay.
The middle-aged man had curled himself into a foetal position around a tree near Hobie Beach.
An overhead boardwalk, which wrapped around the tree, had probably provided a sense of safety from inclement weather.
Shmart Security guards were patrolling on Thursday when they saw the man and called their operations manager to come and investigate.
The man was covered in sand, had flimsy clothes on, and was cold and wet, branch manager Riana Venter told News24 on Friday.
“They went to him and felt that he was ice cold. They couldn’t find a pulse on him so we thought he was deceased at that stage,” she said.
“As they were about to move him, our operations manager Tubby saw his lips were moving.”
They moved him away from the tree and removed his wet clothing and shoes. Tubby rushed to his vehicle, got a sleeping bag and wrapped the man in it to keep him warm.
An ambulance then took him to hospital.
Venter said they were relieved and proud of the effort.
“It was just a matter of spotting something out of the ordinary and following procedure,” she said.
They had heard there was a fisherman who used to lie in that spot and fish.
“We haven’t had any confirmation so this is pure speculation. He could well be homeless.”
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/guards-save-dead-man-under-plettenberg-bay-boardwalk-20170818
