eThekwini Municipality employee Lenny Naicker (59) has died following a hospital stay of just over a week after he was stung by bees, doused with petrol and accidentally set alight.

According to The Witness, Naicker’s younger sister, Tasmia Ismail, said he died on Saturday night at Hibiscus Hospital.

Ismail said Naicker was the sole breadwinner for his family and had dedicated his life to his work at the municipality.

“He loved his work and was such a kind, gentle person. He was a married father of one son, and we are devastated by his death,” said Ismail.

Incident

Naicker, an eThekwini grass cutter from Chatsworth, was hospitalised on December 5 after he was attacked by a swarm of bees, doused with petrol and then accidentally set alight.

He and his colleagues had been working on an overgrown bush in Chatsworth Unit 6 near Gandhi Park following complaints from residents.

The team disturbed a bee nest, which attacked the workers. In a desperate and misguided attempt to chase the bees away, one colleague poured petrol used to fuel the grass-cutting machines over Naicker in the hope that the insects would be deterred by the odour.

Another colleague then lit a fire to ward off the swarm with smoke, unaware that Naicker had been doused with petrol.

Municipal investigation

Commenting on a previous story covered by The Witness, eThekwini municipal spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said an investigation is being conducted into the matter.

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