Young boy drowns at Henties Bay

Young boy drowns at Henties Bay A ten-year-old boy drowned near Henties Bay after he was swept out to sea by strong waves on Wednesday.

According to the Erongo crime investigation coordinator, Deputy Commissioner Erastus Iikuyu, the body of Lee-Wayne Delwin Nanubeb has not been recovered yet.

Nanubeb had been swimming in the sea with friends when the tragedy struck.

“The search for the body will continue. The five boys, aged between six and 10, were swimming in the sea when at about 14:00 they were all taken deeper into the sea by strong waves. One young man who was strolling on the beach saw the dilemma and went in, but he only managed to rescue the four younger boys,” said Iikuyu.

The director of LifeLink Emergency Rescue Services, Brian Louw, confirmed that emergency personnel were called to a drowning incident at the beach.

He said that the LifeLink crew retrieved the youngest survivor, a six-year-old child who was not breathing and had no heartbeat.

“After a resuscitation attempt, the child started breathing again and was immediately transported to the Henties Bay clinic. The child was later transferred to Swakopmund for specialist care. The other child was responsive and was also hospitalised,” said Louw.

This is the seventh reported drowning since just before Christmas.

On 23 December, three persons drowned at the Von Bach Dam. They were Valentino Griffeths (21), Letichia Michaels (27) and Amalia Ndeshipanda Shilongo, age unknown.

The next day, Ernst Isak Willems (20) drowned in the Fish River in the Keetmanshoop area near farm Driebos.

On Christmas Day, the police reported that Maligareta Kadhila (67) drowned after she had attended a wedding at Ongongo.

It is alleged she was dropped home after the wedding but was reported missing later after she failed to return to her house. She allegedly drowned in a canal at Ogongo.

On 30 December, there were two more drownings. A six-year-old girl, Mwalimushi Gideon, allegedly fell into a well at Omukondo village after she and other children were sent there to fetch water.

A 58-year-old Omaruru resident, Heinrich Dörgeloh, drowned at Pelican Bay south of Walvis Bay after the Land Cruiser he was driving was swept into the sea.

At the time of going to print, it was not clear whether the body of the child had been retrieved.

The Namibian police is expected to provide the public with a full summation of deaths, crimes and accidents over the festive season on 22 Janauary.

JESSICA BOTES