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Thupeyo Muleya Beitbridge Bureau

A swimming expedition ended in tragedy when two boys from the Kwalu 2 (Mfelandawonye) suburb in Beitbridge, drowned in an abandoned pool near Limpopo View suburb yesterday.

The two, whose ages and names could not be immediately established, were in a group of five boys who were swimming in the pond around midday.

Two others were able to swim out and sought help, resulting in the third boy being saved from drowning by five body builders working out nearby, who swiftly rushed to the scene.

When The Herald crew arrived at the scene, many people who had walked from across the town wore sad faces.

The two boys’ remains had been covered with a cloth, and their parents and relatives were weeping uncontrollably.

“We were lifting weights a few metres from this pond when two of the boys rushed to us looking terrified and they informed us that their friends had drowned,” said Mr Professor Dube, one of the body builders who rescued the other boy.

“When we arrived, we managed to save the one who was trying to swim out and we then started searching for two others. It took us more than 30 minutes to locate both of them since the water is so dirty and muddy.”

Another of the rescuers, Mr Andrew Sixpence, said they just jumped into the water even though they knew it was filled with broken glasses and was dirty.

Mr Sixpence said they called the police soon after finding the body of the first boy. “We found the second boy after 30 minutes because he had been covered by mud, but we managed to retrieve his remains,” he said. “This is a very sad incident; I am devastated.”

A resident of Dulivhadzimu suburb, Mr Leonard Moyo, said the five rescuers had shown bravery and compassion by making every effort to retrieve the two boys’ remains, even jeopardising their own safety.

He said the Beitbridge Municipality should consider filling up the pond to avoid the recurrence of similar incidents.

Another resident who preferred not to be named, said: “This is very sad, to lose two young souls in this way. Our local authority should urgently fence off or fill up this water pond with soil. We don’t want to see more children dying there.”

Beitbridge Municipality spokesperson, Mr Raniel Ndou, said he was yet to get full details on the incident.

Police officer commanding Beitbridge District, Chief Superintendent Tichaona Nyongo, was not readily available for comment.