UPDATE: Dany is on his way to recovery
Kempton Park athlete, Dany Toko, had a head, stomach and jaw injuries following an accident on CR Swart Drive.
Former Sir Pierre van Ryneveld High School learner and star athlete, Dany Toko (18), is on the road to recovery after being hit by a minibus taxi on CR Swart Drive near Barnard Stadium on Thursday evening last week.
Dany has had three operations since his admission to the Busamed Modderfontein Hospital.
He was hit by the taxi while he was being robbed.
Dany was on his way to training at Barnard Stadium when two men approached him and demanded he give them his cell phone. He refused and they started fighting him until one of them pushed him in front of a moving minibus taxi.
The 400m and 800m athlete was recently awarded the runner-up prize for Sportsman of the Year for 2018 in the district.
Lea Mcata arrived minutes after the accident.
“On my way to the stadium, I saw people being chased. As I got closer, I realised more people were surrounding someone else,” said Mcata.
“I went to the crowd and saw Toko lying on the ground. I was shocked and immediately ran to the stadium to call my coach.”
The incident has traumatised Mcata who told Express she still had flashbacks every time she closed her eyes.
Dany’s older brother, Honezime, said they were notified about the incident by two Sir Pierre’s learners.
“Two learners came to our home looking for my parents. When I asked what the problem was, they told me that Dany had been hit by a taxi and a few minutes later one of his coaches called me and asked to see me urgently,” said Honezime.
“This hasn’t been easy on us, we are still trying to process everything and deal with it. It is really hard but we hope and pray for a speedy recovery.”
The Kempton Park CBD athlete had his third operation on Sunday morning.
“He had two operations of Friday. One was to close a stomach cut and another was on his head as he had a fractured bone,” Honezime told Express on Monday morning.
“He had a jaw operation on Sunday morning. He is responsive and the doctor is happy with his progress.”
Honezime said by Monday Dany was still in the ICU for monitoring.
They also wished to warn people to be vigilant at all times when travelling around that area.
Express spoke to Kempton Park SAPS but hadn’t received comment at the time of going to print.
