Private divers barred from searching for Kliprivier boy who drowned

A Sedibeng family's desperate attempts to use a private company to retrieve the body of a young boy who drowned in the Klip River hit a brick wall on Friday after police barred private divers from entering the “contaminated” water.

Jabulani Mosasane, 7, drowned while crossing the river while out with his cousins and friends in Kliprivier near Meyerton on June 24, according to police.

His body is yet to be recovered.

Mosasane's frustrated family had roped in a private company to assist with the retrieval 12 days after his disappearance after police refused to go into the “dirty and dangerous” water.

The family explained that the divers arrived at the scene on Friday morning but were stopped while suiting up and told they couldn't search as this was a “police scene”.

“They were just about to put on their [gear] when they were threatened ... with arrest,” Mosasane's grandmother Mmatlala Liboche revealed.

TimesLIVE Premium was present as police addressed the family and community members, advising them against the private search. They were effectively told they were on their own should they proceed.

The little boy's devastated parents, Lerato Mosasane and Kamoho Lepelesana, said the police's actions angered them as it only worsened their grief.

“Because day after day we think of our child in the water ... they are killing us slowly. They [also] don't know how to address us because unless we contact them, they don't communicate with us,” Lerato said.

The family said they were still struggling to comprehend how the little boy reached the river, which is nowhere near the residential homes.

Professional diver Richard Ashman confirmed that the family reached out to him after a referral from another company.

“I was in contact with the family. They were referred to me by another dive company on Thursday at about 12pm. I then contacted the mother immediately and said I would be able to assist [and] would be able to come out this morning.”

Ashman said he contacted those who conduct swift water rescues to form two search teams. 

“One being able to dive and one being able to [assess] the scene along the side. When I arrived there this morning, I was there at 5.45am and waited for the other teams to arrive and we were on-scene,” he said.

Ashman said he introduced himself to the police and explained that his team was not there to “tread on any toes” but to assist with the search. He was then briefed on what had happened by one of the children who witnessed the drowning to get a sense of where exactly Mosasane disappeared.

There was initially little resistance to his stated intentions but this changed when the time came to make the dive, he explained. 

“We found the area which we believe he probably went underwater and is possibly stuck in the tree underwater. The police said they had already taken a TLB and the tree that was in the way had been removed. I then indicated that we would be diving in that area. 

“My guys kitted up and while they were doing so, one of the police officers said he would not let me in the water. I said it's fine and he [indicated] that it was a police scene and he's responsible for the scene and I said OK.” 

He then told the family he was unable to proceed given the response he received and left. On issues about the quality of the water, Ashman said: “I haven't been privy to any water [or pollution] tests. The sewage line is downstream from where we were going to dive; the water is not the cleanest but I would've not started preparing if I had deemed it life-threatening”.

Police spokesperson Lt-Col Mavela Masondo insisted the search for the grade 1 pupil continued despite the police's reluctance to wade into the water or to allow private divers to go in.

The scene is a crime scene and [private] divers are not allowed to dive at this scene

—  Police spokesperson Lt-Col Mavela Masondo

He also confirmed that other divers were at the scene on Friday but were barred from entering the water for various reasons.

“The scene is a crime scene and [private] divers are not allowed to dive at this scene. [Second] the divers that were on the scene were not qualified commercial divers and this was reported to the department of employment & labour for investigation. 

“If any person is allowed to enter the water while the commercial supervisor is on scene, the supervisor will be held accountable for any mistakes,” he said. 

Ashman said no documents were requested from them by police officers at the scene.

Masondo also explained why the police divers did not go into the water, despite being at the scene “every day since the day the child went missing”.

“This is not because of the temperature of the water but because when divers get to a scene, the supervisor will assess the scene and do the HIRA [hazard identification and risk assessment), which is a requirement, as well as dive planning according to the national Occupational Health and Safety Act regulations and labour.”

He added that the assessment revealed:

• Sewage in the water and the water was contaminated.
• Swift water, which is a danger for divers to enter as they can be swept under obstructions that can lead to a loss of life.
• Hazards in water in that the scene is full of trees that fell into the river and became obstructions that can lead to entanglement and be life-threatening.

Despite this, Masondo insisted that the search continued using K9-unit dogs for indications, a chopper from the police air wing, wardens to assist in the search along the river banks and drones to search down stream, among other measures.