“WE’RE preparing ourselves for the worst”, says a parent of the six-year-old boy Khayalethu Magadla.
The Dlamini boy fell into a sewerage manhole on Sunday, and until now there has been no success to recover his body or whereabouts.
The search and rescue team from Johannesburg Emergency Services returned to the site in Dlamini, Soweto, on Tuesday, after it was stopped on Monday.
Kholekile Magadla, the father of the boy, has squarely put the blame on the EMS for dragging their feet in recovering his son.
“They should have not stopped the search on Monday, who knows they might have got a lead but they decided otherwise,” says the tearful father, who said they want closure by recovering the body.
The local councillor also joined the search team, and promised they’re working with other councillors to close all the manholes in the area.
He also lamented crime that has grown in the Dlamini and other areas, as a matter of a concern. “If we could try and minimise crime in our areas such matters would have not happened”, he said.
EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the chances of finding the boy alive were slim, and the operation had now been declared a search and recovery.
“Looking at the timeframe of the incident, it’s been three days since the incident was reported, hence we say the chances of finding him alive are very slim,” Mulaudzi said.
“We also briefed the family and they’ve reassured us that they understand and they just want us to bring their son’s remains so they can find closure.”
The rescue teams comprising of police divers, fire fighters and engineers moved from one area to another in Soweto searching the sewer pipes hoping for a breakthrough.
The sewer system is said to be massive in kilometers, flowing from Meadowlands all the way to the Olifantsvlei water purification plant.
In the meantime, the operation is targeting nearby areas. Before heading far and wide.
The manholes in the area 1.8m long and 1.2m wide with water moving as fast as 11km/h presenting a challenge for divers who have to be tactful when entering.
Rescuers also used camera equipment to search the stormwater pipes.
But for the family, that hope of seeing their son alive is slowly fading.
Image (The rescue team still searching for a boy who fell into manhole in Dlamini, Soweto).
