WALVIS BAY – Three children narrowly escaped death on Saturday evening when the shack they were sheltering in was struck by lightning.
The lightning strike ignited a shack fire at an informal settlement in Omaruru, from which the children escaped with their lives.
During the weekend crime briefing yesterday afternoon the acting crime coordinator for the Erongo Region, Deputy Commissioner Otillie Kashuupulwa told New Era a mobile phone left on a table in the shack was struck by a bolt of lightning.
The shack immediately caught fire with the children trapped inside. But the children managed to escape the blaze with the assistance of some community members who managed to open the shack’s door for the children to escape the fire.
“All three sustained burn wounds and are currently in hospital. Their condition is stable,” said Kashuupulwa yesterday.
In other news, a woman died between Swakopmund and Arandis after the vehicle she was travelling in overturned on Saturday.
Kashuupulwa said the driver reportedly lost control, causing the vehicle to overturn on the gravel road. The deceased was identified as the 44-year-old Analiza Goses.
According to Kashuupulwa three people also in the vehicle, including the driver, sustained serious injuries as well. “Two are currently being treated at hospitals in Swakopmund while a third was transferred to Windhoek due to the nature of the injuries he sustained,” Kashuupulwa explained.
In an unrelated incident a 32-year-old man hanged himself early Sunday morning in Kuisebmond. The deceased, Max Whitey Nestor, was allegedly robbed on Saturday night in Kuisebmond by unknown suspects while he was on his way home.
“He was robbed of his shoes and phone and this could have angered him to such an extent that he decided to commit suicide when he returned to his shack,” Kashuupulwa said.
His next of kin have already been informed.
By Eveline de Klerk