AN uMhlanga resident has urged dog owners to be extra vigilant when using the promenade, especially if their pets are on a long leash.
This comes after local resident, Balan Joseph (62) was severely injured by a dog walker on the promenade. Joseph suffered tendon damage to his quadriceps and had to be stretchered off the promenade following the incident.
He is expected to take more than two months to recover following a successful surgery at Life Healthcare Mount Edgecombe Hospital.
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“The incident occurred on 30 October between 6.30am/7am. I started the morning like any other with a five kilometre walk on the uMhlanga Promenade. I was walking in a southerly direction when a runner going in the same direction (but behind me) ran with his dog on a long leash. The dog went to the left and the runner on the right and the leash took me out and I was down in seconds. At the time I didn’t know how bad the injury was but I was in immense pain. I had to have a tendon and quadricep repair surgery.
“I’ve been walking everyday for the past 15 years and it’s something I enjoy doing but unfortunately after what happened, I will be unable to walk properly for the next eight weeks. I also want to urge runners and walkers with dogs on leashes to be vigilant when using the promenade so that incidents like this could be avoided. I do feel we can share the promenade so it’s unfortunate something like this had to happen. I must give praise to the uMhlanga UIP and the lifeguards who were quick to help out and get me to hospital. Unfortunately the road to recovery is a long one and my children who all live out of the province have had to cancel plans to care for me for the next few weeks,” Joseph said.
Joseph said he is also trying to get in touch with the runner involved in the incident.
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“The runner was very apologetic and said he had saved his number on my phone before I was loaded into the ambulance. When I got to hospital, I looked through my phone but could not find his number. I hope, through this article, he will come forward and contact me on 082 562 6329,” he said.
He added he hoped this incident could help raise awareness to dog owners using the promenade.
“I’m a brisk walker so I was going at a decent speed when I was taken out. I do feel this could’ve happened to anyone so I just wanted to raise as much awareness as possible,” he said.
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