Pupil, 12, drowns in Mtshabezi River Judith Dube
Judith Dube

Judith Dube

Marvelous Moyo Gwanda Correspondent
A 12-YEAR-OLD Gwanda boy drowned in Mtshabezi River on Sunday afternoon while taking a bath with a friend as water problems continue in the mining town. The boy, who was identified as Mncedisi Ndlovu by his relatives, was a Grade Seven pupil at Mount Cazalet Primary in the town.

When Chronicle visited the late pupil’s guardian’s home in Spitzkop North Extension, relatives and neighbours were still in shock over the boy’s death. The boy’s sister, Judith Dube, who said she was his guardian, narrated how Ndlovu allegedly met his death while in the company of a Grade Six friend.

“They left home with my husband going to wash some clothes at Mtshabezi River because here we’ve gone for almost three months without water. My husband said when they got there, Mncedisi and his friend were playing on a foot bridge and he warned them against that,” said Dube.

“He said they then took a bucket and indicated that they wanted to take a bath.

“He said he advised them to collect some water and bathe just close to where he was but they refused saying there were some girls nearby whom they didn’t want to see them naked.”

She said the two boys then proceeded to bathe in the river.

“While bathing, his other friends called him to come to the other side of the river where they were and in the process, while on his way to them, he slipped and fell into deep waters.

“A man tried to rescue him but he said it was as if something was holding on to Mncedisi’s legs and he (Mncedisi) cried asking the man to release him and he drowned,” Dube added.

The incident was quickly reported to the police who swiftly responded, but the search was in vain.

Dube said some people kept a vigil at the scene waiting for the sub-aqua unit which arrived yesterday morning and retrieved the body.

“I was so hopeful that he would come out alive because I thought he had been taken by a mermaid but was so heartbroken when I saw his body this morning,” said Dube.

She said the boy was in her custody as her mother, who is separated from the pupil’s father, was based in South Africa.

The boy’s father, Khawulisa Ndlovu, grappled with his son’s death.

“I’m so powerless and I don’t even know what to say to you. I’m still trying to understand how it happened,” said Ndlovu.

Matabeleland South acting provincial police spokesperson Sergeant Thabani Mkwananzi confirmed the incident.

He advised members of the public to ensure that their children do not play near water bodies.

Last year in November, a Gwanda police officer drowned in the same river while bathing with a friend. Mncedisi is believed to have drowned at the same spot.

Several people have died in the river with people alleging that there were mermaids.

Despite the continued deaths in the river, residents said they were forced to turn to it because of water challenges facing the town.

Yesterday, residents continued collecting water and bathing in the river after the body was retrieved.

 

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