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'I don’t think I'll allow my son to go on a camp again' - Parktown Boys' High mom

───   07:33 Sat, 18 Jan 2020

'I don’t think I'll allow my son to go on a camp again' - Parktown Boys' High mom | News Article
PHOTO: Eyewitness News

Some parents whose children were part of the Parktown Boys' High School's grade 8 orientation camp where 13-year-old Enoch Mpianzi drowned said that they were only notified on Friday morning about the tragedy.


They're now demanding answers on why they were informed late about Mpianzi’s disappearance.

Some parents of pupils who were part of the orientation camp have questioned why the school took so long to inform them about the tragedy.

One father said that he only learnt about the incident on the news.

“When I heard on the news that a child was missing and had drowned, I felt distraught that this culture of the military is still being practised.”

He's raised concerns about the safety measures at the camp.

"These are children going to look after children – the so-called matrics. I had this thing that something will go wrong."

At the same time, a mother said that she was relieved that her son made it out alive.

“I am really traumatised, it’s scary. I don’t think I will ever allow my boy to go on a camp again.”

The parents are demanding answers not only from the school but also from Nyati Bush and Riverbreak Lodge in Brits.


LODGE MANAGEMENT: PUPILS WERE TOLD TO STAY IN SHALLOW WATERS

The police said that it appeared that Mpianzi was caught up in a strong current and a full investigation into the circumstances were now underway.

The manager at the Nyati Bush and River Break Lodge, Anton Knoetze, has told Eyewitness News many children did not participate in the water activity because they did not feel confident.

"They say he was not a strong swimmer, so maybe it was a little bit of peer pressure. When the first group started panicking, we stopped the activity and moved on to something else."

Knoetze said that all the boys were taken out of the water after the raft capsized.


Eyewitness News

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