A nine-year-old boy Armedforce Mandume drowned at a popular entertainment park in Ongwediva on Sunday afternoon. 

According to Oshana police commissioner Rauha Amwele, the caretaker alleged that the children were swimming in the baby pool while she was babysitting a nine-month-old baby.

She said the nanny explained that she did not notice how Mandume left the others and began asking around the park if anyone saw him. 

“The nanny was later informed that the lifeguard Hendrick Natangwe Kateta who is also responsible for cleaning the pool removed a body and she went to confirm if it was Mandume,” Amwele said.

The boy who was in the company of a neighbour (the nanny) was reportedly swimming with two other young boys in the baby pool and was not seen moving to the adult pool or when he jumped in. 

Kateta, who has been working at the establishment for close to two years, said that he is usually on alert to watch out for movement of younger children around the adult pool. 

Kateta said just last month, he saved a 35-year-old man from drowning because he was being vigilant and kept his eyes on the pool. 

He explained that he was busy cleaning the baby pool as a result of the windy weather, which was blowing trash into both pools. 

He further said the boy who drowned was in the company of two of his friends who came to the pool with their nanny at around 16h30. 

“At around 17h00, the nanny was taking selfies and when I offered to take full body pictures of her, she asked me to first help her find the boy before she could continue taking photos, while holding a baby in her hands,” said Kateta.

He said as soon as he was done cleaning the baby pool, an older boy alerted him to clean the big pool too, and he realised that he was stepping on something under the water.

“The pool was full and everyone was swimming.

“I came with the trash remover and when I touched on the floor to pull out what he was pointing at, the head came up. I jumped in and took out the boy. I tried to press down at-least two times but he was not responding,” Kateta recalled. 

He said, he then ran to the laundry room to get a blanket so he could cover the boy and went to the reception to call the police. 

-vkaapanda@nepc.com.na