Durban - On Saturday night he was playing football for Maritzburg United against Orlando Pirates and scored a goal, but the next morning he had lost his life.
Witnesses say speed could have been the cause of the accident that left Maritzburg United football player Mondli Cele and sports journalist Delisiwe Ngwenya dead on Sunday.
Cele, 27, died in hospital while Ngwenya, 29, a sport presenter for the SABC, died at the scene after the crash in Pietermaritzburg between 5am and 5.30am.
Fishermen pulled two young women out of the car that had partially submerged in the Msunduzi River in Alexander Park.
It’s believed Cele had been driving at the time.
Police are investigating the accident and said the family members who arrived at the scene in the afternoon were asking about the cause of the crash.
Two eyewitnesses, one of whom said he saw it happen, and another who was walking about 50m from where it occurred, said speed could have been a factor.
Bongani Ndlovu, who collects empty cans for recycling, said he was nearly run over by the car.
“It was driving at high speed; I had to jump out of the way. It hit the speed hump and spun around. The driver tried to control the car and swerve, but that was when it just went straight into the river.
“It hit a tree (on the bank of the river) and flipped onto its side. The front part of the car went down first into the water.”
Ndlovu said some fishermen were close to the accident scene. One leapt into the water, while others were able to reach the car from the riverbank.
“One of them was not afraid of the water, so he jumped in. We managed to pull out the two young women in the back. We struggled to pull out the two people in the front seat.
“The young woman in the front seat was held by her seatbelt but we couldn’t open the front doors because they had been blocked by mud.”
The second witness, Patrick Ntuli, said he was on his way to work, walking on Durban Road, when he heard the crash.
“The car was driving fast. I could hear it trying to brake and heard the noise, and I knew that something had happened.”
He called for an ambulance.
Ngwenya, born in Bergville, had been a sports journalist for the SABC since August 2014.
Her mother Xolile MaGumede Ngwenya said that when one of the survivors phoned her about the tragedy, her prayer was that her daughter’s body did not go missing.
“I calculated how long would a person stay alive under water and I accepted that she was no more. I just prayed that God would help us find her body so we can bury her,” she said.
Ngwenya’s body was retrieved by emergency workers.
SABC spokesman Kaizer Kganyago said they were shocked to wake up to the news of Ngwenya’s passing.
Women in Media (WIM) KwaZulu-Natal spokeswoman Dudu Khoza said Ngwenya was an active member of the organisation and they were saddened by the loss.
“She joined WIM during its relaunch in May 2015. There will not be one moment where I forget her infectious smile and wisdom,” she said.
The two young women involved in the accident, who did not want to be named, were discharged from hospital by midday.
They later returned to the scene. One of them had a slight limp and the other was inconsolable as she stood at the bank of the river where her friends lost their lives.
Over the years, a number of South African soccer stars have lost their lives in road crashes.
- In October last year, Ajax Cape Town defender Cecil Lolo was killed in a car crash in Khayelitsha.
- In April last year, Free State Stars striker Richard Henyekane died in a car accident in the Free State.
- In 2012, Bafana Bafana’s assistant coach Thomas Madigage died when he hit a donkey on the R37 between Polokwane and Burgersfort.
- In 2010, Jomo Cosmos and Bafana defender Oscar Ntwagae died in a hit-and-run incident in Germiston.
- In September 2007, Mozambican Fernando “Nando” Matola, who was a defender for Black Leopards, and his family died in a Limpopo accident.
- In the same month, Sundowns FC midfielder Mpho Gift Leremi died after losing control of his car in Brackendowns, near Alberton.
- In August 2003, Orlando Pirates striker Lesley “Slow Poison” Manyathela was killed in a car accident in Limpopo.
- In 1999, former Orlando Pirates defender Meshack Tshepo Zwane died in a car accident in Zimbabwe.
- In 1998, Clifford Moleko, a midfielder who played for Seven Stars, died while driving to Johannesburg International Airport.
The Mercury