MOSSEL BAY NEWS - Mossel Bay resident Michael de Nobrega and his eight-year-old son, Miguel, removed a large fishing net, washed up on Bayview Beach on Saturday, 15 March.

De Nobrega, a volunteer for the Stranded Marine Animal Rescue Team (S.M.A.R.T.), had come across the net while looking for turtle hatchlings that may need rescuing when he was walking between Bay View Beach and Hartenbos just before 19:30 that Saturday evening.

He said the net was far too big for him to remove on his own, but leaving it behind weighed heavily on him as "these nets are absolute death traps for marine life".

The following day, he went back to the beach to look for the net, bringing along his son, who is also an avid animal lover.

"We saw it in the shallow water. A kind woman who was fishing nearby and an elderly fisherman helped us drag it out of the water. Then Miguel and I started cutting the net up so it would be easier to move.

Miguel de Nobrega (8) cuts up the fishing net. Photo: Michael de Nobrega

"After we had cut it up, we dragged it about 300m, including up 25m of steep stairs, where we loaded it on to the back of my bakkie," said De Nobrega.

"I explained to my son what the net is and what it does and he is relieved it is out of the water and off the beach.

He said the whole process, from finding it, removing it from the water, cutting it up and dragging it to the bakkie, took about two hours.

"Miguel handled it like a real champ. I could not have removed that net without him. I am very proud of him," said De Nobrega.

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