Tragic end to children’s innocent game
Family devastated as kids suffocate to death after hiding in chest freezer
Playing hide and seek ended in tragedy when three children died from asphyxiation in King William’s Town last week.
Brother and sister Sihle, 4, and Emihle Nkatshase, 7, and their cousin Hlalumi Nkatshase, 3, are believed to have been playing hide and seek in their Ginsberg home when they hid in an unused chest freezer.
They pulled the hinged lid down shut and were unable to open it.
The three young children, who all share the surname Nkatshase, will be laid to rest on Thursday.
Police said the case had been referred to the National Prosecuting Authority.
Spokesperson Captain Siphokazi Mawisa said the case had been reported on Friday.
An inquest docket was opened and registered for investigation, she added.
She said: “There is no foul play suspected but police are investigating.”
A devastated Nonkosi Sinxo, a family member, said they were battling to come to terms with their loss.
“Family members were on their way to withdraw their social grants and left the children at home,” she said.
“They [the children] were short and were probably not able to open the lid.”
Describing the three children, Sinxo said: “They were just typical children, all so sweet and playful.
“The youngest was active, but the other two were shy. They were so loving.”
She said there were clothes lying around the fridge when their bodies were discovered inside it.
Sinxo said the department of social development had visited the family on Tuesday and would support the family to bury the three children.
She said the department had also promised to help with food parcels after the funeral.
Provincial social development spokesperson Mzukisi Solani was unavailable to comment at the time of writing.
They were just typical children, all so sweet and playful