Family still looking for answers following child’s electrocution
Yamila Ismail was electrocuted and died on December 4 when she came into contact with the electrified tap in her neighbour’s yard as she was opening it to drink water.
The mother of a little girl (7) who died after being electrocuted on a garden tap in Reiger Park said the family is finding it very hard to heal and reach closure without answers about the tragic death of their daughter.
Her emotional mother, Zatoen Ismail, said although they were told that Yamila Ismail died of electrocution, the family members are still seeking answers.
They want to know how the plastic tap became electrified.
Police registered an inquest docket after the death, but the mother claims the family has not received any feedback from the police regarding the status of the investigation which, she said, raises questions about how the authorities are handling the case.
The desperate mother went to the police station early last month to try to ascertain the status of the case.
“I was told that the investigating officer was attending training and that they will see to it that he makes time to come and see us. To date no one has come or contacted us about the case.
“We have had no feedback from the police,” said Zatoen.
The Reiger Park SAPS’ Sgt Mashudu Phathela said the detectives were still awaiting a report from the metro’s electricity department officials who carried out an investigation to determine what may have caused the tap to become electrified.
It is unclear why it has taken the metro almost three months to finalise their investigation.
The metro has not commented on the issue yet.
The Advertiser recently revisited the house where the child was electrocuted.
The homeowner, 47-year-old Gladys Philander, said she was also left in a state of shock after learning about what happened to Yamila on her property.
“I was in the house when I heard people, including children, shouting outside. My boyfriend went out to check and came back to tell me that Yamila has been electrocuted.
“I burst into tears and couldn’t go outside to see her after they told me that she is dead.
“We are also still very much in the dark about how the tap became electrified.
“All that the metro officials told us is that our earth-leakage circuit breaker was not working properly and we needed to replace it.
“Our electricity has been disconnected since the day of the incident, so we haven’t had power for over three months now,” said Philander.
ALSO READ:
Child (7) shocked to death by electrified water tap
Post-mortem confirms Reiger Park child was electrocuted
Electrocuted Reiger Park girl was devoted to church and school work
