In a heartbreaking tragedy, a young boy’s life was tragically cut short after he drowned in a stagnant pool of floodwater, Cape {town} Etc reports.
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According to IOL, one-year-old Sinoxolo Sethi was with his mother, Ntombi, at their home in the Phumla-Mqashi (Green Park) informal settlement in Covid, Mfuleni, last Friday when he tragically wandered off unnoticed.
The heartbroken mother recalls that she was just about to give her child a haircut when a neighbour interrupted her, diverting her attention for only a moment.
‘It was around 4pm when I decided to cut his hair, but my neighbour asked me about her key and I went to show her and told her that I didn’t have it.’
‘When I went back home, he wasn’t there, I searched for him, I went into the bushes shouting his name and there was no response.’
‘I went back to my neighbour and told her my baby was missing and she thought I was joking and said I must go look for him.’
The distraught mother says she searched for her son for three agonising hours before his lifeless body was discovered in the water, just 50 meters from their home, at 7 pm.
Ntombi reported her son missing to the committee members, and as they prepared to call for him over a megaphone, a neighbor informed her that a child’s body had been found.
‘He told me that he was dead in the water. I ran to the scene and saw that he really drowned,’ Ntombi adds.
Ntombi believes her son may have wandered off to visit some older children who live nearby.
Community leader Luthando Mcuntula explains that the pool of water was a result of recent flooding.
‘This is one of the worst flooded areas in Covid. It has been like this since July,’ Mcuntula explains.
‘I arranged for a digger loader to come and open a trench so the water could flow into the river.’
‘On Wednesday, I asked the councillor to come and see the mother of the deceased and also see how he could help since the family has no burial money. The mom isn’t working.’
Police spokesperson Wesley Twigg stated that Mfuleni police have registered an inquest, and a post-mortem will be conducted to determine the cause of death.
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Picture: Gallo