Toddler electrocuted at Dakota Beach
This recent catastrophe has prompted the municipality to expediate the installation of metered electricity in the informal settlement.
A three-year-old girl was electrocuted and died in the Dakota Beach informal settlement on Sunday, 14 February after standing on an illegal connection.
Phumelele Juqu was a pupil at Lindokuhle Creche. “The little girl was playing in the area in the afternoon when she stepped on bare wires which were illegally connected to a light pole and ran across the dirt road,” said her teacher, Sithobile Nyeza.
Her funeral was held on Tuesday, 23 February.
The informal settlement has been plagued by shack fires, with a number of child fatalities in recent years.
The creche is named after Lindokuhle Myeza who died in a shack fire.
The area, which hosts in excess of 600 shacks, had no creche and mothers were forced to leave their young children at home alone while they went to work. Often the older children could not go to school as they were tasked with looking after the younger ones.
Where there were no older siblings, a guardian routinely checked up on toddlers or babies left in the shacks.
The dire situation prompted PR councillor for Isipingo, Jaco Pienaar to get two refurbished shipping containers donated to start a creche in the area. With assistance from the Amanzimtoti Lions Club, the creche was opened in July 2014.
This recent catastrophe has prompted the municipality to expediate the installation of metered electricity in the informal settlement.
The Pelgrim informal settlement in Isipingo had meters installed in November 2014, which eliminated the chance of firemen being electrocuted when fighting shack fires.
