See the news highlights for July 2013

• July 2: The tenth annual Innibos festival saw a record number of 106 500 festival goers flood the grounds of Bergvlam high school this year. Those who sold their goods at the various stalls during the festival claimed a good harvest and compared their income to that during the 2007 festival which featured Smokie as a headline act. The biggest issue this year was however the new access control system they implemented which was never tested before the event.

• July 5: A young Canadian tourist was attacked and clawed by a lion at the Moholoholo Rehabilitation Centre near Hoedspruit. The young girl was a volunteer worker and made headlines as the “Lion-kissing Canadian” after she claimed that moments before the attacked her and the lion were kissing through the fence. The lion managed to hook his claw into Lauren Fagen’s right thigh through a double fence enclosure. Fagen later fully recovered at Mediclinic Nelspruit.

• July 9: The local community was shocked at the news of a prominent traffic official, Johan Heunis, who had shot and killed his friend Michelle Curgenven. When police and security officers arrived at the scene they discovered the body of Curgenven slumped forward in her vehicle inside the garage. She had been shot in the side and was pronounced dead. Heunis later appeared in court.

• July 12: Local radio station MpowerFM went off the air for the second time in as many years. Managing Director of the station, Mark Schormann, denied that the station was in financial difficulties and said that they would continue operations despite being off air.

• July 16: The convicted child molester, Carl Lotter appeared in court for his sentencing hearing after a prolonged court case that lasted four years. Lotter pleaded guilty on four charges of child molestation, but his lawyer Coert Jordaan managed to get charges of rape against him dropped.

• July 19: Regarded as the father of the nation, former President Nelson Mandela fell  ill, with many believing that he would not recover. Riverside Mall dedicated a vacant retail space inside the centre to a wall where locals could write messages of good hope to the former president. Many residents rushed there to make their mark and wish Madiba a speedy recovery.

• July 23: The amazing story of how a holy book survived the fiery inferno that completely destroyed a house and killed its two inhabitants. An elderly couple were burnt beyond recognition in their cottage in West Acres. Devastated family members found hope in what they believed to have been a miracle after the Qur’an survived untouched and open at passages the family believed were messages directed to them from God.

• July 26: A father of two was brutally assaulted at a local fuelling station after he apparently left a nightclub without paying his bill. Mr Johan “Panner” Cronje A shareholder of the famed Tango Blue strip, Cat Smit, was caught on surveillance videos as he viciously beat Cronje to within inches of his life. The video footage was posted on Lowvelder‘s webpage and instantly went viral.

• July 30: MOTHS commemorate the battle of Delville Wood. A memorial ceremony was held in Kaapsehoop to honour the memory of the South African soldiers who lost their lives during the fateful WWI battle. The ceremony was held at Davies’ grave who was one of the last survivors of that battle.