Court grants millions to scarred child

THE Limpopo Education Department will have to pay R7 million in damages to the mother of a 5-year-old child who had suffered such severe burn wounds when he fell into a burning schoolyard dumping hole, that he virtually has no fingers left.

The boy was injured in an incident at Mutuwafhethu Primary School in Dopeni Village, Limpopo, during school hours when he fell into the burning dumping hole on the school grounds.

He sustained severe burn wounds to his face, hands, legs and several other parts of his body.

His mother turned to the Limpopo High Court, sitting in Thohoyandou, as she held the education authorities liable for her child’s fate. The education department admitted 100% liability for the injuries the boy had suffered.

The matter was now back in court to determine the amount of damages payable to him.

The child was brought into court so that the judge could have a physical observation of the hands. This revealed serious and grave healed scars on the hands, with virtually no finger left unscathed.

Essentially, the child no longer has functional fingers.

The Limpopo education MEC had already paid the mother an interim amount of R1m that she could attend to her son. This amount was an interim payment, pending the outcome of these court proceedings.

An educational psychologist who had performed a psycho-educational assessment of the child, told the court that because of the fire accident he had been subjected to, he had had a decline in cognitive functionality which made him perform below the average of his age group.

According to her, he would need specialised schooling or so-called remedial education. His teacher, however, said that he actually achieved very good marks at school.

Other experts testified about the psychological scars which the incident has left on the child.

In observing that the child virtually had no fingers intact, Acting Judge MS Monene remarked: “Essentially, the child no longer has functional fingers. It is just a mark of human resilience and adaptability that he can still hold a pen somehow.

“No one should, in this court’s view, downplay the seriousness of the injuries and the near completeness in obliterating the child's hand functionality.”

The judge said it is an obvious fact that the child’s physical and psychological impairments have gravely diminished the quality of his life and his enjoyment of amenities of life. “That it happened so early in his life at the age of 5 only serves to point out how extensive his problems are and are expected to be for life.”

Judge Monene said the fact that he has reached maximum recovery levels exacerbates the issues further.

“I do not have to indicate the effect of the scarring and amputation of fingers on the child’s future life, be it in love or in life in general for a very long lifespan.

“I do not have to highlight the psychological ramifications which are well-captured in the evidence that was led before me.”

The judge noted the pain and suffering the child has to endure.

These include that he has been deprived of the right to play without inhibitions which every child has. The judge also remarked that he “will not find it to be routine to find a life partner in the current looks-obsessed environment we live in.”

It was also noted that he will probably struggle with mundane things such as putting a ring on his fingers.

“His injuries are irreversible and permanent, making his suffering and loss of amenities a lifelong sentence visited upon him by the defendant’s admitted negligence,” the judge said.

It was ordered that the department had to pay him nearly R7m in damages (R6.971m).