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Two siblings, Jacobus “Essie” Esterhuysen and his sister Dané (both pictured above), as well as his two beagle dogs, lost their lives on Friday, May 14, after the helicopter they were in crashed into the Vaal Dam.

Esterhuysen, 69, was a well-known businessman in the region, owning the Esgro Group that manages food franchises such as Wimpy and Steers at filling stations.

He was hoping to spoil his sister, Dané, for a weekend away at his house at Vaal Marina.

She was picked up from the guesthouse that she managed in Wilderness along the Garden Route.

But the helicopter, flown by her brother, plunged into the Vaal Dam.

A video, filmed by an onlooker, captured the tragic moment:

Via Cape Town Etc, here’s a statement from the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI):

“Just after 18:00 on Friday, May 14, NSRI Vaal Dam duty crew were alerted to reports of a helicopter accident on the Vaal Dam.

On arrival on the scene, near to the Vaal Marina, 200 metres off-shore, a Robinson R44 helicopter was found to have ditched in the Vaal Dam.”

A bystander, using a rowing craft, had recovered an adult female from the wreckage and sadly she was declared deceased by paramedics.

A Police Dive Unit, assisted by NSRI, scuba-dived on the wreckage and recovered the body of an adult male believed to be the pilot and sadly he was declared deceased by paramedics.”

SAPS divers recovered Esterhuysen’s body the following day, along with the dogs, and the wrecked helicopter was also dragged ashore.

Some members of local aviation forum Avcom speculated on the cause of the crash, reports TimesLIVE:

A flight that Esterhuysen had done many times previously, forum members speculated on whether he had misjudged his height over the water as he came for the landing.

Judging altitude over calm bodies of water is notoriously difficult and can lead to pilots thinking they have more height than they do.

It was also officially after sunset which would have made judging the terrain much harder, they said.

Other possibilities could be a medical emergency or that one of the dogs managed to wriggle out of its harness and cause a disturbance at a critical moment of flight.

The SA Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is conducting an investigation into the crash, spokesperson Kabelo Ledwaba said.

[sources:timeslive&capetownetc]