LAKESIDE – Moments later, when his grandfather arrived home from work, he called the 11-year-old to send him to the shops.
After going back to his friend, a group of young boys came to report that the young man had been crumpled by underground sewer pipes which were left abandoned for 5 months.
The family rushed to the scene where Thobile lied on his stomach without any pulse.
They quickly took him to the hospital where the young man succumbed to his head injury.
Speaking to Sedibeng Ster, Anna Qwabe (50), grandmother to the deceased said she agreed to her grandson skipping school because other kids weren’t attending.
“He was helping me with house chores, when we had nothing to do, he asked to go play. When my husband came back from work, he called him to send him to the school,” she said.
Vusimuzi Qwabe (49), Grandfather of the decease said “I couldn’t find coins to send him to buy me coke, so I let him go continue playing. Moments later, his friend came running saying unclear words about pipes, blood and my boy”.
“We had a mind block and we went out where he was lying between unguarded pipes,” he added.
Vusimuzi said they took Thobile to the nearest clinic.
“He wasn’t moving or talking but he was still breathing. The Doctors examined him and moved him to Sebokeng hospital,” he said.
“When we arrived at hospital, he was admitted. We stood outside and prayed for his well-being. A doctor came out and released us, the next morning as we prepared to go check on him, we received a call that Thobile had passed on,” he said.
The Qwabe family said they are left broken following the incident.
“We hoped for a lot from Thobile. My son was very peaceful, respectful and had love. We believe if it wasn’t for the negligent of the contractor to leave those pipes there, our son will still be alive,” said the distraught grandfather.
After the incident, the sewer pipes which were left unbarricaded for five months, were removed.
“The law must play its role to make sure we get the justice we deserve. Every construction has safety officers, they should have known that leaving those pipes there was a call for accident.”
Sedibeng Cluster Police Spokesman Sergeant Shaan Motsapi said a case of inquest was opened.
