Ppretoria - A Centurion private school has been held 80 percent liable for the damages suffered by a former pupil five years ago, when he was impaled on a metal post which stuck through his rectum.
Jaco van der Merwe suffered severe injuries including the tearing of his rectum and bladder.
He underwent extensive operations and will have to undergo more, the High Court sitting in Pretoria, was told.
Jaco’s mother, Cora van der Merwe, instituted a claim for more than R2 million against pro Tempo Academy CC in Centurion.
Acting Judge S Strauss ruled that the school was liable for 80 percent of the damages which could be proved. The amount payable will be determined later, as several experts will have to testify. Van der Merwe said her son was doing much better and writing his matric exams.
“He, however, fell behind with his maths due to the accident and will have to do a bridging year to do better.
“The accident took its toll on him - both emotionally and physically. My biggest dream is for him to be able to receive reconstructive surgery, so that his body is back to what it was. He had to have more than 70 stitches after the incident and our medical bills were nearly R1 million.”
It is not clear what happened to Jaco on the day in 2009, when he was 12. He told the court he was not feeling well and could not recall climbing onto the metal dropper (post).
There were several metal droppers on the playground, used to support newly planted trees.
Judge Strauss noted that the droppers were easily accessible by the children.
Jaco said they were playing cricket on the playground and could remember the metal dropper sticking out from above the tree, but could not recall how he got to sit on it.
All he could recall was that he had injured himself and was “very, very sore”. He rushed to the toilets where one of the teachers came to check on him and noticed blood. The teacher said he saw a pool of blood, about the size of a plate, in front of the boy.
His mother said her son’s version was that he sat on the metal object.
The school denied liability, stating they could not have foreseen that he would climb onto the pole.
Judge Strauss said the poles did create a dangerous situation and a less potentially harmful way should have been found to secure the trees.
Pretoria News