A 20-month-old toddler, Xivono Hlungwani from Xigalo Mahlambandlopfu village in Malamulele, tragically lost her life after reportedly falling into a water-filled garbage bin. The incident happened last Friday (24th).
Preliminary investigations indicate that the toddler wandered off while the mother was busy with chores. After a few minutes, the mother and other family members noticed that the toddler was nowhere to be found. They searched and found the girl inside the garbage bin that was full of water. She was immediately pulled out but showed no signs of life.
Members of the local community, as well as family members, blame the tragic accident on the unavailability of water. With the taps often running dry for weeks on end, the family, like many others in the community, had to store water in various containers, including garbage bins and water drums.
When Limpopo Mirror reached out to the mother of the deceased, Ms Hlayisani Hlungwani, she said she was severely traumatised by the incident and referred the reporter to her neighbour, Ms Portia Khosa.
Khosa said that they were still in disbelief over the incident. "The incident is disheartening because her life was cut short because of the inconsistent water supply. Xivono (which means vision) was a loving child who used to visit my house. She will be buried on Wednesday 29 May, at her home, and her memories will always be with us," she said.
Mr John Baloyi, the councillor for Ward 26, sent his condolences to Xivono's family. He said the water problems in the village were being addressed, and they now had sufficient boreholes. "We arranged counselling support for the family," he said.
Lt-Col Malesela Ledwaba, the spokesperson for the police in Limpopo, confirmed the incident and said that it was being investigated by the Malamulele Police Station. He said that the police had been contacted and had rushed to the scene, only to find the lifeless body of the deceased lying on the floor inside the house. "The EMS personnel were summoned to the scene, and on arrival, they declared the toddler dead," said Ledwaba.
Limpopo Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Thembi Hadebe is pleading with the parents and guardians of children to always be vigilant and alert about their safety.
A spokesperson for the Vhembe District Municipality, Mr Moses Shibambu, said that the VDM was in the process of upgrading the water supply infrastructure at the village. He said that the project to refurbish the Malamulele East water treatment works had been put out on tender and once this was completed, the rotational system currently in place at villages in the area would no longer be necessary.
Shibambu said that many cases of illegal water connections existed at Xigalo village and he appealed to residents to report this to the VDM.