Tragedy strikes family as boy, 5, electrocuted
A young Garden Route mother took her eyes off her son for just a moment to go to the bathroom — but when she returned, her worst nightmare had come true.
Her only son, Bradlin Jacobs, 5, had electrocuted himself after touching an electrical box on the municipal sports field where a Heritage Day sports match was being played on Saturday.
Now, Jayden Jacobs regrets ever going to the bathroom.
“My son might still have been alive had I not gone to the bathroom,” were the first words Jacobs uttered when a Herald reporter visited her home in Plettenberg Bay yesterday.
The young boy died in front of his friends with whom he had been playing only moments before.
Police spokesperson Captain Malcolm Pojie said an inquest docket had been opened for investigation.
The tragedy occurred at about 4.05pm. “Preliminary reports indicate that the mother and the deceased went to the bathroom at the local sports ground at [about 4pm],” Pojie said.
“While the mother was inside the bathroom, another person informed her that her child was lying on the ground outside.
“Further reports suggest that the boy was electrocuted by the electric power box located on the sports field near the entrance.”
He said the boy was rushed to Knysna Provincial Hospital, where he was declared dead.
Describing the events of Saturday, Jacobs said no-one in their small Kranshoek Township had wanted to miss out on the excitement of the soccer match to mark Heritage Day.
The small family had walked a fair distance to watch the game, but came away with a memory that would haunt them forever.
After an ambulance was called, emergency workers spent an hour trying to revive Bradlin before transporting him to the hospital.
Jacobs, a brickmaker by profession, sobbed uncontrollably yesterday as she recalled her final moments with her son.
“I had not been gone for long when I was called and told the worst news of my life.
“I was told my son had been shocked because he had touched a live wire in the electrical box.
“What happened next is a blur for me as numerous people tried to revive him,” she said through her tears.
Bradlin’s grandfather, Bradwell Moos, 42, who had given the child his name because it was similar to his, described their relationship.
“Every morning, he arrived here at 6am when his mother went to work,” he said.
“I would make sure he was ready for school and at midday I would pick him up again.
“He loved playing games on my phone, or the whole neighbourhood’s children would be here because he was the life of the party.”
Moos described his only grandson as inquisitive, smart and vibrant.
Speaking on what he had witnessed on Saturday, Moos said: “A friend of his of similar age pulled him away from the box as he was shaking.
“Another child is probably traumatised by what he saw.
“What hurts most is what the municipality is saying about his death.
“There was no lock on that electrical box.
“I showed a municipal official who lives on the property that there was no lock.
“I saw it for myself. “After Saturday’s incident, they put a lock on the box.
“I saw the municipal statement blaming vandalism.”
He said the family had been visited by ward councillor Annelise Olivier.
“I believe that my [grand]son died because of municipal negligence.
“I have decided to go the legal route,” Moos said.
Municipal spokesperson Andile Namntu said an internal inquiry was under way while police were busy with their investigations.
“The electrical box at the Kranshoek sports field where the accident took place was vandalised, which allowed for unauthorised access to live electricity.
“Unfortunately, this is how the five-year-old boy gained access, even though the municipality’s padlock was still in place,” Namntu said.
Bradlin will be buried on October 8.