The drowning of a 14-year-old boy in a quarry of water filled with sewage in Meloding, Virginia, has left the community shocked to its core.
On Sunday, 24 November, members of the Meloding SAPS were informed of a boy who was in trouble at the quarry, which is situated in an open space near the Meloding Graveyard.
The friends of the child told the police that a group of boys had been swimming in the quarry when one of them drowned.
The SAPS Diving Unit was summoned to the scene, but it was a health risk because of the sewage in the quarry, says Lt. Col. Stephen Thakeng of Lejweleputswa SAPS communication.
Matjhabeng Municipality employees were deployed to drain the sewage. The body of the deceased was found stuck in the mud of the quarry.
Thakeng says the body was retrieved at 17:30 and brought beside the quarry, where the boy was certified dead by emergency medical services personnel. A case of inquest was registered for further investigation.
The deceased was identified as Pule Lithebe by his father, Lefu Semenyane, residing at Zone 13 Meloding.
“Children are sternly warned to, during these school holidays, not swim in quarries full of water or sewage, as it’s a health risk and they could drown. Parents must know the whereabouts of their children,” says Thakeng.
Tshediso Tlale, official spokesperson for the Matjhabeng Local Municipality, declined to comment at the time of this article being published.