Dragon's Wrath 2017

This is a slightly more accurate account.

m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10154845289484118&id=95163909117

As Tony mentioned I was on the above rescue and I thought I'd share some thoughts and tips that could be helpful to forum members.
The first thing that I noticed on this particular rescue was that despite having their exact coordinates, their two tents were not obvious to locate considering that a significant portion of the tents were covered in snow. It became obvious later that they had set up camp just before or shortly after the snow began and so their tents, which were green and dark blue, presented little visibility from the air.
The lesson here is that should you find yourself in a similar situation, to try and make yourself as visible as possible from the air. When you hear the helicopter circling above searching, and you are able to, get out of your tent to wave and move around, even have something bright set out on the ground - this could shave valuable time off the rescue. Just remember to remove all loose objects when the chopper is on it's final approach to you.
Also if there are no major medical issues and it is safe and you are physically able to, once you hear the chopper or even before if you have received an estimated pick up time, start packing up your gear! The rescue team is not always going to have the time to help you pack up and you could end up leaving gear behind.

The other point that comes to mind is preparedness. Light and fast or light and slow is a popular approach these days but it comes with increased risk, especially on longer hikes when you can't predict the weather with any accuracy. Most of the party had hiking shoes/ trail shoes as opposed to boots and these got wet and froze, which rendered them unusable. Two of the the party had to walk to the chopper barefoot. That said, moving in those conditions would have been difficult for anyone without snow shoes.

My personal feeling is that given the time of year and the fact that they were on a multiple day hike (at least >5 days), they were just unlucky to be caught in that situation.

Tugela Gorge Rescues
Late on the 6th December a call for assitance was received from the Royal Natal NP ranger. Two situations had occurred deep in the Tugela Gorge. A teenage boy had suffered a head injury and clavicle fracture . In addition 36 teenage females and 2 teachers were trapped on an island in the swollen Tugela River. Heavy rain had been falling for many hours.
An MCSA rescue team was dispatched by road at last light for Royal Natal NP. They then met up with members of Ezemvelo and Okhahlamba disaster management.

A long night's rescue then started. First was to treat and then carry the injured boy out who was then taken by road to hospital. The team were unable to cross the swollen river and bivvied for the night near to the trapped party. Early in the morning with a lower water level, ropes were set up and the party were brought to safety.

Mountain Rescue in the Mnweni valley 27 December 2017.
The Mountain club of SA KZN Section rescue team and the South African Air Force's 15 Sqn rescued 2 Belgian hikers from the steep slopes the Mnweni valley, northern Drakensberg. The hikers had got lost and had got into a dangerous situation above some cliffs. They were winched onboard an A109 at an altitude of 7800ft and taken to safety at the Mnweni Centre for a medical examination before being released.
Gavin Raubenheimer (S&R Convener)