Divers discover body of girl in Cape Town river

The body of a child was discovered in the Black River near the N2 highway in Cape Town on Monday.

Western Cape police spokesperson Sergeant Noloyiso Rwexana said an inquest docket was opened for investigation after the discovery of the as yet unidentified child. A post-mortem would be conducted to determine the cause of death.

Cape Town's fire and rescue services spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said they helped the police to recover the body of a female minor on Monday, but the child’s identity could not be confirmed until the family had identified the body.

Police and fire and rescue service divers scoured the Black River for days after a young girl fell into a canal in Belgravia Estate, Athlone, during a large storm which hit Cape Town on July 7.

They were also looking for a man who jumped in to try to save her.

Rescue crews believed that they were swept away by the torrent which would have taken them through a tunnel underneath an extensive stretch of Athlone suburbia before they would have washed into the Black River near the Athlone Wastewater Treatment Plant.

The search was suspended on Friday, July 8, after divers struggled to search among thick debris and undergrowth which needed to be cleared before police divers took over the search.

The body could be seen from the highway on Monday floating in shallow water near the river bank before it was removed and placed in a white body bag and taken away.