SANDF member injured while practicing for expo – critical but not dead

A member of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) who sustained head injuries while practicing for the Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) expo is critical but alive.

This after reports that the member had died.

Critical but stable

SANDF communications head Siphiwe Dlamini told Pretoria Rekord the member had been stabilised since the incident on Thursday, but remained in a critical condition.

Dlamini said the member was performing an aerobics manoeuvre for the expo when he fell, seemingly from a plane overhead.

“After the unfortunate incident, the Gauteng Emergency Medical Service (GEMS) paramedic, in collaboration with the South African Military Health Services (SAHMS) medical team, stabilised the injured member, who was then flown in a South African Air Force Oryx helicopter to a hospital in Pretoria where he underwent further medical procedures,” Dlamini explained.

He said the SANDF pleaded with members of the public to allow the injured member and his family privacy “during this difficult time”.

Expo in pics

The expo ran from 21 to 25 September at the Waterkloof Air Force Base in Centurion, and is Africa’s only aerospace and defence expo.

The event combines both a trade exhibition and an air show, and returns after a long break as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The air show took place over the past weekend.

Edited by Nica Richards.

Parts of this article first appeared on Caxton publication Pretoria Rekord, by Terry-Ann Diergaardt. Read the original article here.