Hout Bay beach has made headlines this week.  The beach has been closed since late last week after standard water tests revealed high levels of E.coli.

According to Benedicta van Minnen of the mayor’s office, the cause of the high E.coli levels may not necessarily be only due to human waste in the Disa River which flows through Hout Bay.  She stated that, after the heavy rains at the end of the rainy season, the storm water flowing into the sea can also raise the E.coli levels.

The NSRI was in the news again this week after rescuing a sailor who fractured his hand and arm whilst on board his vessel.

The Anna M was sailing from Cameroon to Singapore when a 41-year old Turkish sailor fell 5 metres on board his vessel and required medical assistance.  The vessel headed for Cape Town to arrange for the evacuation of the sailor.

Pat van Eyssen NSROI Table Bay station commander said, “Our NSRI Table Bay volunteer sea rescue duty crew launched our sea rescue craft accompanied by two Western Cape Government Health EMS rescue paramedics and responded.”

The sailor is being treated at Christiaan Barnard Memorial Hospital.

Results of studies done by Nasa regarding the thinning of the ice in the Arctic sea grabbed also attracted some media attention.  Ice readings are at their sixth lowest since recording began in 1978.

Nasa tracks sea ice from space, as well as performing airborne field research.  Operation IceBridge operates flights over the Arctic and has been measuring sea ice and ice sheets for several years.

According to Walter Meier, researcher at Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Centre in Maryland, “It is so much thinner than it used to be, it is more susceptible to melting.”