<div style="text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 1rem;">Three South African navy divers died after being swept away from their submarine in choppy waters near Cape Town on Wednesday, the country's military said.</span><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The incident occurred off the coast of the town of Kommetjie, as an army submarine en route to Cape Town staged a refuelling operation at sea.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The operation involved a helicopter dropping off supplies, but that went awry when strong waves lashed the submarine.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"High waves swept away seven crew members out to sea," said the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The rough conditions adversely affected rescue attempts.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"All seven members were recovered but sadly there were three fatalities with one senior officer in critical condition," said the army in a statement.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The South African National Defence Union, a trade union for the military, also confirmed the "navy exercise" incident and the casualties.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Cape Peninsula is home to South Africa's largest naval base, Simon's Town.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The South African navy is to hold a series of parades and exercises in Cape Town from Saturday to Monday, with the public invited to board ships and a submarine. AFP</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd24/kh</div>