A nine-year-old boy is feared to have drowned after he went missing when he and two friends went swimming in a Macassar River.

• A nine-year-old boy went missing when he and two friends went swimming in a Macassar river on Thursday afternoon.
• Residents fear the boy has drowned. 
• On Saturday, a drone helped police divers search the river. 

Residents of Macassar, Cape Town, have came out in their numbers on Saturday to Search for nine-year-old Mbongi Hilton Esau, who disappeared in a nearby river where he and two of his friends went swimming after school on Thursday afternoon. 

On Saturday afternoon, at least four Police divers were on the scene with a search dog as they continued searching for the boy. 

Western Cape police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm Pojie said police divers, a K9 unit and EMS rescue teams were on the scene.

"[He] was reported missing by his family early Friday morning after he and friends allegedly went for a swim. These friends later took members [of] the police [to] where he allegedly disappeared under the water.

"It is presumed that he had drowned. The search for the boy continues," said Pojie. 

Community leader and chairperson of the Freedom of Speech non-profit organisation, Waseemah Flaendorp, said a search started after the boy was reported missing. 

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"When we heard the news, we immediately went to the river to see if we could find him, but there were no sights of him anywhere in the river or the surroundings," said Flaendorp. 

She added that the police questioned the boys on Friday on what had happened on Thursday afternoon. 

The boys told the police officers that they had been playing in the area before going for a swim in the nearby river. 

"Police then went to the river and started searching for the boy with the help of the community members. The boy's mother and brother also came out to help in the search. They are in a complete state of shock," said Flaendorp. 

She added that Mbongi's mother went into the water to help police find her son. 

By late Friday afternoon, posters started circulating on social media, asking members of the public to look out for the missing boy. 

"When we went back to the river on Friday afternoon, we spotted Mbongi's clothing that he was wearing before he went into the water. His mother and brother were there and immediately identified his clothes.

Flaendorp said:

Residents fear Mbongi got into trouble in the water and possibly drowned.

On Saturday morning, the police divers were back on scene with the search dog, Flaendorp said. 

A community member offered to use his drone to help police with the search.

The drone circled around the river, providing an aerial view of the water and possible sightings of the boy's body.

"The water quality is very dirty, so it's unclear to see what is inside. But we will continue to search for him because any child that goes missing is of great concern to the community, and we are feeling the pain that the family are feeling right now," said Flaendorp.  

Mbongi's mother was too emotional to speak to the media.