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Jennifer Visser folds her son’s school clothes before his funeral on Friday.
- Gershwin Visser joined friends swimming in a dam in Philippi last week. He went in but never came out.
- The 11-year-old boy was pulled out of the water by a friend, Shaheen Wagied.
- Residents, who say this is not the first drowning at the dam, have been calling for a fence to be erected for years.
“Some of us dove into the water trying to find it. I felt a blanket and then a hand. It was his. I threw it and brought it to the surface.”
This was the moment when 17-year-old Shaheen Wagied recovered the body of her friend, Gershwin Visser, from a dam in Philippi, Cape Town.
Eleven-year-old Gershwin had left the house on Saturday morning while his mother, Jennifer Visser, was away. The family lives in an informal settlement called Egoli, in the middle of the Philippi horticultural area. Visser said he thought Gershwin had gone to play with close friends.
The land on which the informal settlement is located, including the dam, is privately owned.
READ | 3 drown in Cape Town
We have not been able to locate the owner.
Wagied said that many children had been swimming in the water, but Gershwin went in and never came out.
After Gershwin was pulled out of the water, a resident tried to resuscitate him, he woke up and vomited. But soon after, his tongue turned blue and he stopped breathing.
“I think it was because they laid him on his back instead of on his side, so he could have choked. The ambulance came only four hours later. What people don’t realize is that this dam is deep. Like tires, blankets, even a pleasure boat, “said Wagied, who was taught how to swim by his brother.
When GroundUp visited Visser on Tuesday, he had just returned from identifying his son’s body at the morgue.
She was sitting on an old paint bucket at the entrance to her dark hut. His daughter and niece were sitting on the bed. Visser said:
“I was napping when a neighbor came in shouting that my son had drowned. I jumped out of bed, ran towards the prey and there he was, lying there. I warned him about that dam that morning. I’ve warned countless times before not to go play there because it’s dangerous, but he never listened. “
Egoli community activist David Ruiters said that he had been living in the informal settlement for two years and that there had been countless complaints about the dam in the area.
“The neighbors have been wanting some kind of closure or barrier on that dam. This is not the first drowning. Three people had already drowned in that dam. And sadly, our children are not going to stop swimming because it is hot, and There’s nothing else to do in this place to keep them busy, “Ruiters said.
Lack
“Most of the residents here are unemployed and there is a serious lack of resources. There is no electricity and residents have turned to illegal connections. Needs like schools and clinics are far away.”
“We are doing everything we can to encourage the community, but it is not easy. At the moment, I am trying to get help for Gershwin’s funeral,” Ruiters said.
Because the land is privately owned, the City cannot provide services, such as electricity, without the owner’s permission.
The mayor’s water and waste committee member Xanthea Limberg said the city’s water and sanitation department was nevertheless able to install 12 water intakes, 55 chemical toilets, 43 container toilets and 299 portable toilets with download.
According to Malusi Booi, Mayco member of the city for human settlements, Egoli has approximately 700 households.
Describing her little brother, Lynette Visser said: “He was a joker and never the annoying little brother. Everyone in the area knew and loved him. He was sweet and very helpful. It was supposed to be his crown birthday next month. I’m really going to miss him. “
Police spokesman Frederick van Wyk said an investigation had been opened and the incident was under investigation.
Gershwin’s funeral will take place on Friday.
