Enoch Mpianzi not the first child to drown at Nyati Bush Breaks lodge – report
A Grade 12 pupil reportedly died during a similar water activity in the same river.
Nyati Bush and River Break lodge. Picture: https://www.travelground.com/
The death of 13-year-old Parktown Boys pupil Enoch Mpianzi in a drowning incident on Wednesday was not the first time a schoolchild has drowned at the Nyati Bush and River Break lodge, an EWN report has revealed.
Two sources told the publication that a Grade 12 pupil died during water activity at the North West lodge in 2010, which took place in the Crocodile River, where Mpianzi was also killed.
Mellony Sias from Adamantia High School in Kimberley attended the Nyati Sports School as a member of his school’s hockey team.
His drowning was confirmed by the school as well as someone who was involved in a search-and-rescue mission that tried to locate Sias at the time, according to the report.
The Citizen contacted Nyati Bush and River Break lodge director Anton Knoetze, who had not responded to requests for comment at the time of publication.
He told EWN last week that Mpianzi’s death should be considered an unfortunate accident, for which no one was to blame.
READ MORE: SAHRC encounters locked gate at lodge where Enoch Mpianzi died
It was reported earlier on Tuesday that SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) officials encountered a locked gate at Nyati Bush and Riverbreak Lodge near Brits in North West on Tuesday when they arrived to conduct an inspection of the scene where 13-year-old Enoch Mpianzi died.
They eventually had to climb over the gate, along with the victim’s mother.
Mpianzi drowned while taking part in a Parktown Boys High School Grade 8 orientation camp last week.
He went missing on Wednesday when a raft he was on overturned in the Crocodile River. His body was discovered on Friday.
The SAHRC’s Buang Jones said the SAHRC stepped in to assist the boy’s family, pointing out that there were many unanswered questions about the circumstances of the boy’s death.
Jones said the owner of the lodge had been notified about the visit and had agreed to open his gates. He added, however, that en route to the venue, the owner informed SAHRC officials that he would consult his lawyers to discuss the visit.
(Compiled by Daniel Friedman. Background reporting, News24 Wire)
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