Durban - A matric pupil who died saving young lives during the fire at the Lakehaven Child and Youth Care Centre has been hailed a hero by his school principal.
Minenhle Ngcobo, 20, rescued four children during the blaze before he was overcome by the fire, which claimed the lives of seven others last Thursday.
Burnwood Secondary School principal, Vanesh Gokal, said Ngcobo had returned a number of times to the burning cottage to take children to safety.
It is believed the young man died after the wooden floor in the cottage collapsed.
Gokal described Ngcobo as a soft-spoken, well-mannered and academically sound pupil, and described him as a hero.
“When they wrote exams I’d tap him on the shoulder and say, Go ahead and do it, son’,” he said. “He was like my son,” said Gokal.
Ngcobo, like Gokal, was diabetic and the two formed a bond after the pupils learnt he had the condition last year.
“I would give him fruits when he was feeling weak because I knew how he was feeling because at times he would be very weak, but overall his condition was very well-managed.”
Gokal said the school community was devastated by Ngcobo’s death.
He said the pupil would have turned 21 on August 13, almost a month after his death.
The Sydenham school was sombre this week, but Gokal said the school would be using Ngcobo’s death as an opportunity to reflect on how short life is.
“The saddest thing of all is that Minenhle is never going to get married, he is never going to have ice cream again and he is never going to live his dream.
“I said to the pupils that some of you misbehave, some of you don’t do your schoolwork, but you have the opportunity that Minenhle will never have again, let us make his dream a reality,” he said, urging his pupils to turn a corner. “Minenhle is a hero for what he has done,” he said.
“When we heard the news of the fire the first thought was for Minenhle because we knew that is where he stays, but we never expected what happened.”
Minenhle had spent some of the holidays in a winter school programme, Gokal said.
“He was working very hard, he had big dreams, he was definitely going to pass well, his marks were very good, always,” he said.
The school plans to hold a memorial service for Minenhle on Tuesday.
The Department of Social Development has launched its own investigation into the blaze at the Sea Cow Lake facility, which would not interfere with the investigation being done by the police, labour and fire departments.
MEC Weziwe Thusi said: “Ours (investigation) will focus on matters of compliance with the norms and standards for child and youth care centres focusing on the protection, care and safety of children.”
The eThekwini Municipality said it would be assisting the bereaved families, although there would be no mass funeral.
“Six families of the children that died, will each receive R15 000 to cover the burial costs. Each of the families will bury their loved ones at the site of their choosing,” said eThekwini spokeswoman, Tozi Mthethwa.
Two of the children would be buried at the state’s expense after no immediate family could be found, she said.
The eight who died were: Minenhle Ngcobo (20) of Ndwedwe; Sbongiseni Nxumalo (18) of KwaDukuza; John Shusha (17) of Durban; Sfundo Ndlovu (17) of Pietermaritzburg; Ajesh Gangerpasad (9) of Durban; Gabriel Mbambo (11) of Pinetown; Fikisani Chala (8) of Harding; and Sandile Duma (8) of Durban.
Daily News