A 10-year-old Eastern Cape boy’s summer holiday in Cape Town ended in tragedy when he drowned in a farm dam.
The boy drowned in a dam near Wallacedene cemetery along Botfontein Road on Wednesday afternoon as temperatures soared in the Mother City.
A group of children apparently did not want to swim in the dirty dam near Wallacedene and headed to the Avondrust farm to swim.
It took police divers about 10 minutes to find the boy’s body in the middle of the dam.
A Wallacedene woman at the scene, who identified herself as the boy’s 35-year-old aunt, said: “We are all so shocked and it was very difficult to let his family in the Eastern Cape know about his death.
“Sanele has been visiting us for the past three weeks and was due to return home soon.
“They were a group of boys that went swimming and they came back to tell us that Sanele had disappeared under the water.”
An elderly resident of Wallacedene adds: “The closest public pool is in Durbanville. The farm owner often comes to warn parents to keep the children away from the dam because it is not safe. We don’t blame him because he can’t watch the dam all the time.”
Police spokesperson Joseph Swartbooi says Kraaifontein police registered an inquest for further investigation.
“Kraaifontein police responded to a complaint on Wednesday. Upon arrival at a nearby farm on Botfontein road at around 2.40pm, they were informed that a boy was swimming in the local dam when he experienced trouble,” he explains.
“It was perceived that the boy drowned. The SAPS diving unit was called to conduct a search. They retrieved the body of the boy.”
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