‘When You Save Somebody, I can’t Explain the Feeling’ – Pat Van Eyssen
The strangest sea rescue in Pat van Eyssen’s 50-year career involved a man stuck on an island who could not be rescued.
That man was Nelson Mandela; his country would rescue him a few years later.
Van Eyssen had been despatched to Robben Island to rescue penguins, and just happened to bump into the world’s most famous political prisoner. “I met him unofficially while we were walking up the road to where they’d put the penguin cages,” Van Eyssen recalls. “When I think back on it, there was I was chatting to this young strong man, somebody who would later be the State President.”
It’s just one remarkable story from a remarkable man who has skippered a NSRI boat for 48 years, and was a worthy recipient of last month’s International Marine Rescue Federation lifetime achievement award. Van Eyssen, 69, has stared down the worst of the Cape’s notorious coastal waters, spurred out by a deep sense of civic duty. He has plucked people off sinking dinghies, been lowered onto the deck of stricken trawlers, and sat with families at funerals of those who couldn’t be saved. When he retires, if he retires, it will be with the knowledge that he saved numerous lives and touched countless others. “When you save somebody, I can’t explain the feeling,” he says.
“In the earlier days there were the Chinese fishing trawlers that would run aground in the thick mist. We get called for many different emergencies. To name one, I have spent two to three days at sea searching for a little fishing boat which had gotten lost in the mist off the west coast.”
Van Eyssen started work at the Table Bay’s Station 1 when it was still a small office little bigger than a bathroom at the old Unity Naval Base at Cape Town Harbour. When alerted to a maritime accident they had to row out to their rescue craft which was moored off a jetty. “Things have changed tremendously over the years and boats have improved 100%” he chuckles, recalling some of the major innovations. When on duty, you were contacted via your home phone, to report to the base for a call. If you were not at home, you had to contact medi call who the doctors used and give them the phone number to enable them to contact you.”.
“Later there was the paging system and we all carried pagers. Now it is easy with cell phone contact.”
“Technology has grown by about 500%” he says.
Almost as surprising as meeting Mandela was receiving news that he had won the IMRF award. “I was travelling in Northern Namibia with my wife and brother-in-law and got a call from Cleeve (Robertson) saying I have won this award. I was overwhelmed.”
He said he was humbled by the award, but said all credit should go to the NSRI organisation and all volunteers involved. “I never expected any gratitude from the NSRI. It has just become part of my life.”
