23 May, let us pause to remember these young men from our Generation who answered the Sunset call.
23 May 1949: MPO121256 Sergeant Jurie Jacobus Wessels from the South African Medical Corps suffered a coronary thrombosis shortly after going on pension and died in 1 Military Hospital at Voortrekkerhoogte. He was 59.
23 May 1960: P/15983 Sergeant Jurie Johannes Janse van Rensburg from the South African Army Pay and Clerical Corps died in the Pretoria General Hospital as a result of hydrocephalus (a fluid build-up in the brain). He was 35.
23 May 1979: Two members from 5 Reconnaissance Regiment were Killed in Action at Shona Mutamanjamba in Southern Angola while carrying out a reconnaissance mission to locate a suspected SWAPO/PLAN Base in the area. The three-man Team was tracked and ambushed by a numerically superior force of SWAPO/PLAN insurgents and in the ensuing fire-fight, two of the Team members were killed and the third member, although wounded, successfully evaded capture until the helicopter arrived to extract the Team. Upon hearing the approaching helicopter, the SWAPO/PLAN force broke contact and withdrew from the area. The casualties were:
67260869PE Captain Jacobus Cornelius van Wyk HC. He was 27. (Captain van Wyk won the Honoris Crux after distinguishing himself while serving with Bravo Group during Operation Savannah in 1975/76.)
73288375PE Sergeant Johan Kloosterziel. He was 22.
23 May 1983: 74341090BT Rifleman Coenraad Jacobus Bezuidenhout from Regiment De La Rey was killed instantly when a Soviet RPG-7 Anti-Tank Rocket was accidently fired inside their Buffel Troop Carrier while travelling on the Oshakati-Oshikuku road. He was 24.
23 May 1983: 77387944BT 2/Lieutenant Jacobus Edward Visser from 202 Battalion SWATF was killed in a private motor cycle accident at Rundu. He was 23.
23 May 1983: 01570019PE Commandant Izak Johannes Henning from Air Force Headquarters Died of Wounds received on 20 May 1983 when a powerful car bomb placed by MK Operatives outside the Air Force Headquarters building in Church Street, Pretoria, exploded during the afternoon rush-hour period killing 7 SADF members and 10 civilians. Another 197 SADF personnel and civilians were wounded in the explosion that also killed the two MK Operatives who had placed the bomb. He was 51.
23 May 1987: 81033854BT Private Andries Francois Nel from the Technical Service Corps attached to 1 Maintenance Unit was killed in a private motor vehicle accident at Diskobolos in Kimberley. He was 22.
23 May 1991: 74011685PE Warrant Officer Class 1 Petrus Jacobus du Plessis from the School of Engineers died in the Voortrekker Hospital at Kroonstad after suffering a brain haemorrhage. He was 48.
23 May 1994: 90474396BG Corporal Ryno Johannes Greeff from School of Engineers died in Kroonstad as a result of a gunshot wound accidentally self-inflicted with a private hunting rifle. He was 20.
23 May 1998: 94675071 Rifleman P F Mashiyi from the 111 Battalion died of disease in the Nelspruit Hospital. He was 25.
23 May 1998: 94739547 Rifleman D M Molale from 21 Battalion died as a result of injuries sustained after being assaulted by persons unknown at Pongola while he was off duty. He was 24.
23 May 2008: Corporal Sibusiso Dube from the South African Army, attached to the United Nations MONUC Mission was killed in an explosion at the Nyiragongo base in Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). He was 30.
23 May 2012: Able Seaman Thulani Emmanual Mbuli from the Maritime Reaction Squadron (MRS) operating from the SAS Drakensberg, was Reported Missing during anti-piracy operations in the Northern Moçambique Channel. He together with other members of the MRS and Special Forces Team had boarded a suspect Iranian Dhow, the HQUANE for a routine search and inspection operation. While he was disembarking from the ship, he slipped off the ladder and fell into the sea. Despite a 36-hour search, no trace of his body was ever found. He was no known grave and remains unaccounted for. He was 19.
Their names and sacrifices will not be forgotten.