Cape Town - A 14-year-old pupil from York High School in George is in intensive care in hospital after another schoolboy allegedly hit him on the head with a shoe inside a pillowcase.
Grade 8 pupil Andrew Searle was taken to the Medi Clinic George on Tuesday night.
According to his father, Sean Searle, a group of boys entered the school’s dormitory where he was sleeping.
His son was struck once on the leg and once on the side of his head, he said.
“He was struck with what we are led to believe was either a pillow or a pillowcase and it had a shoe inside. It is what they call a dormitory raid. It was not sanctioned by the school,” Searle said.
He said no senior boys were involved.
“About an hour later he experienced severe head pains and asked his friends to call the housemaster. After the housemaster came, he was taken to hospital very quickly.
“Fortunately the hospital is about five minutes away. He arrived there in a semi-conscious state.”
His other son, Michael, 16, called his wife, Sally, at their Plettenberg Bay home at about 12.30am to say Andrew was going for a CT scan.
“It was very fortunate that a neurosurgeon happened to be at the hospital. He diagnosed him as having subdural haematoma (bleeding on the brain). Andrew went for immediate surgery. They drained blood, stabilised him and put him in ICU,” said Searle, who was at work in Joburg when the incident took place.
Andrew was sedated and would remain in ICU until tomorrow at least, he said.
“The doctors want to keep him under sedation until Saturday and then they’ll assess his condition. We are positive of a speedy recovery.”
Medi Clinic George hospital manager George Schutte said: “He has been in theatre for surgery. His condition is stable.”
Education MEC Donald Grant’s spokeswoman, Bronagh Casey, said according to an official there was some horseplay among grade 8, 9 and 10 pupils and things got out of hand.
“A Grade 10 pupil allegedly had a shoe in a pillowcase and hit the Grade 8 boy. He is in hospital with a skull fracture. Some children have been suspended from the hostel - not the school.
“The school’s governing body will look at taking further action. The pupil is still in ICU and we are hoping for his full recovery.”
Cape Times