Legal battle brews over Joburg teen’s amputated hand

A teenager who lost his hand in an accident is still waiting for justice two years later, his mother says.

The boy, then 11, was rushed to hospital after his left hand was slashed by a piece of glass that fell from the fifth floor of a building in Joubert Park.

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His hand was later amputated as “it was hanging from a few tissues”, his mother, Charity Sibanda, said.

“Since the incident in January 2022, the owners of the building have not assisted my son or helped with medical bills,” she said.

A legal battle is now looming as the family’s lawyer, Mabu Marweshe, has located the owner of the building, Sibanda said. Marweshe said the case was at an advanced stage.

“We had to wait for the department of health to share copies of the medical records and are proceeding with instructions to sue for damage.”

An investigation report, commissioned by Prinsloo Whitehead Madalane Attorneys, representing the building’s owner, confirmed the incident happened as a result of glass that fell from the building.

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“On 7 January, 2022, a minor [the son of Mrs Charity Sibanda] of approximately 11 years old was injured by glass that fell from Ivanhoe building.

“It is the under standing of the undersigned that fragments of glass fell from the fifth floor as a result of a window pane that broke when a side-hung window sash was slammed shut by a gust of wind,” the report read.

“The locking handle and the sliding stay were in working condition. Failure to secure the window in the open position by not tightening the stay, by an occupant of the flat, could not be foreseen and prevented by the owner of the building.”

A letter written by the owner’s lawyer states: “Our expert, in his report, concludes that the window was in good order.

“Although our clients have the utmost sympathy for the tragedy that has happened to your client’s son, no liability can be attached to our clients and any action will be defended.”