News / Local
Kombi runs over Grade 2 boy, playmates conceal accident
26 Jul 2016 at 01:39hrs | Views
A GRADE Two pupil from Mbizo Primary School in Bulawayo's Luveve suburb died after being hit by a kombi in Cowdray Park.
The driver of the kombi, who is yet to be identified, rushed Tadiwa Hillary Fida (7) to Mpilo Central Hospital soon after the accident which occurred at around 12PM on Sunday.
Tadiwa died due to serious head injuries hours later. The driver is said to have handed himself over to the police afterwards.
Hospital staff had a torrid time locating the boy's family. Sources said Tadiwa had accompanied his friends for a haircut and the kombi hit him as he ran to catch up with them.
The boy's playmates didn't notify his parents.
Tadiwa's mother Ms Sibonile Moyo told Chronicle that she became worried when her son did not come home.
"I wandered around Cowdray Park searching for him to no avail," she said.
"Later on I asked a neighbour to accompany me to the police station. I felt my blood freeze when we were told that there was a young boy who had been hit by a car.
"A neighbour called and told me to abandon the search on the pretext that they had found him. I sensed something was amiss as I rushed home. I almost blacked out when they told me Tadiwa had been hit by a car in the afternoon," said Ms Moyo.
She said Tadiwa's friends, who had earlier said they didn't know where he was, confessed he had been hit by a car.
The friends, Ms Moyo said, fled from the scene and were afraid to tell anyone.
"We then proceeded to Bulawayo Traffic West but before we got there we were told of his death. I saw the vehicle that killed my son. It's in very bad shape, it could have been speeding," she said.
The grieving mother said her son had died a very painful death.
She said they proceeded to Mpilo in the company of the driver's friends and vehicle owner to identify the body but she was so grief-stricken that she could not get into the mortuary.
Ms Moyo said her husband is on his way from South Africa where he works.
News about the accident circulated on WhatsApp on Sunday evening.
A message read that a boy between the age of eight and 10 years had been hit by a kombi and was appealing for relatives who had a missing son in Cowdray Park to check with Mpilo's casualty ward.
"I didn't see the message. I just heard today that there was such a message," said Ms Moyo.
She said she had not met the driver who was still in police custody but she had met the owner of the vehicle, his friends and relatives who had offered to assist with burial arrangements.
Mourners are gathered 16692 Cowdray Park.
The driver of the kombi, who is yet to be identified, rushed Tadiwa Hillary Fida (7) to Mpilo Central Hospital soon after the accident which occurred at around 12PM on Sunday.
Tadiwa died due to serious head injuries hours later. The driver is said to have handed himself over to the police afterwards.
Hospital staff had a torrid time locating the boy's family. Sources said Tadiwa had accompanied his friends for a haircut and the kombi hit him as he ran to catch up with them.
The boy's playmates didn't notify his parents.
Tadiwa's mother Ms Sibonile Moyo told Chronicle that she became worried when her son did not come home.
"I wandered around Cowdray Park searching for him to no avail," she said.
"Later on I asked a neighbour to accompany me to the police station. I felt my blood freeze when we were told that there was a young boy who had been hit by a car.
"A neighbour called and told me to abandon the search on the pretext that they had found him. I sensed something was amiss as I rushed home. I almost blacked out when they told me Tadiwa had been hit by a car in the afternoon," said Ms Moyo.
She said Tadiwa's friends, who had earlier said they didn't know where he was, confessed he had been hit by a car.
The friends, Ms Moyo said, fled from the scene and were afraid to tell anyone.
"We then proceeded to Bulawayo Traffic West but before we got there we were told of his death. I saw the vehicle that killed my son. It's in very bad shape, it could have been speeding," she said.
The grieving mother said her son had died a very painful death.
She said they proceeded to Mpilo in the company of the driver's friends and vehicle owner to identify the body but she was so grief-stricken that she could not get into the mortuary.
Ms Moyo said her husband is on his way from South Africa where he works.
News about the accident circulated on WhatsApp on Sunday evening.
A message read that a boy between the age of eight and 10 years had been hit by a kombi and was appealing for relatives who had a missing son in Cowdray Park to check with Mpilo's casualty ward.
"I didn't see the message. I just heard today that there was such a message," said Ms Moyo.
She said she had not met the driver who was still in police custody but she had met the owner of the vehicle, his friends and relatives who had offered to assist with burial arrangements.
Mourners are gathered 16692 Cowdray Park.
Source - Chronicle
