Couple in bizarre bridge jump

The young couple who bizarrely jumped off the La Mercy bridge were rescued off a nearby floating island.

Durban - The young couple who bizarrely jumped off the La Mercy bridge in Durban on Sunday evening were rescued off a nearby floating island by paramedics and police.

According to Paul Herbst, Operations Manager at IPSS Medical Rescue, the reason for the couple jumping of the bridge is still sketchy. "This was definitely not a suicide attempt and we are still unsure as to why the couple jumped off the bridge," said Herbst.

Although the reason for the couple jumping is unknown, a great deal of resources were required to rescue the couple from their situation.

Herbst explained that two rescue swimmers and a police search and rescue team were lowered down to the stranded couple from the bridge and then had to equip the couple with floatation devices and swim them to an exit point, approximately a kilometre downstream.

Earlier, a Facebook post about the incident from private security company Reaction Unit South Africa (RUSA) reported the incident as an attempted suicide and that the RUSA helicopter could not be mobilised to assist with the rescue operation?.

On the Phoenix Crime Watch Facebook page, a comment was made by Wolfgang Neethling, the man who claims to be the person who jumped after the woman, stating that "The deceased couple is very much alive, I will tell you why because we are that couple." Neethling added that it was not a suicide attempt but rather a freak accident. "My wife reached for something, she lost her balance and went over. Upon seeing this I went after her as I thought she was dead and was trying to get her out but due to the lagoon being so dense we both got stuck," said Neethling.

Police Spokesperson, Major Thulani Zwane, said, ”SAPS confirm an incident that occurred on 24 January 2016 where a couple had allegedly engaged in a dispute then the female jumped off the bridge; the male jumped after her. They were rescued by the SAPS Search and Rescue. No injuries were sustained.”

Mojo IOL