Body of drowned pupil who found after four months

The body of the pupil who drowned at Lake Guinas near Tsumeb during a school trip has finally been retrieved.

Police inspector general Joseph Shikongo confirmed this yesterday.

O’linn Nauyoma (16) from Etosha Secondary School drowned last September while on a learners’ representative council (LRC) training trip.

“Yes, there were a lot of attempts made by the Namibian Police to recover the body, but due to the nature of the lake they were not able to.

“I think further steps were taken to get some more experts to see if they can recover the body.

I can confirm to you that yes, today there was a breakthrough of recovering a body, which, of course, is in a decomposed state,” Shikongo said.

The body was recovered by police divers, after which it was taken to the police mortuary, he said. “Before handing it over, we wanted to be sure it is the body of the young boy,” he said.

The lake is said to be linked to Lake Otjikoto, with a width of 59m and a length of 120m.

The centre of the lake has a depth of more than 130m, depending on the water level.

“So, we are now conducting a forensic investigation before he is handed over.

It was actually members of the police sea divers who retrieved the body with the regional command of Oshikoto,” Shikongo said. O’linn’s father, Cornelius Nauyoma, told The Namibian he was hopeful his son’s body would be found for closure.

Police chief inspector Elifas Kuwinga previously said the drowning took place when the pupils went bungee jumping at the lake.

Nauyoma said it has not been easy for his family and described the recently ended holidays as the worst festive season.

“I think about my my son every hour of the day, although I might be busy with something else, he is just the one on my mind.”

Oshikoto education regional director Aletta Eises yesterday said the Ministry of Education, Arts and Culture met with the bereaved family last November to contribute funds to secure private divers.

Eises could not provide the exact figure the ministry offered for this service and referred The Namibian to the executive director’s office.

Executive director Sanet Steenkamp said she would provide the figures, but they were not received at the time of publication.

“We sympathise with the family and stand with them during this difficult time,” said Eises.

Eises further said the directorate also provided counselling for the family.

Oshikoto police commander commissioner Theopoline Nashikaku says the police divers tried their level best.

“We are approaching some stakeholders and the line ministry to declare the lake as a danger zone.

We will be putting measures in place to indicate the distance whereby those visiting the lake will not be allowed to get too close,” she says.

Nauyoma, a resident of Ongha village in the Ohangwena region, says his son went home during the school’s midterm break, but soon after he [Nauyoma] received a call from a teacher asking that he send his son back to school as he had been elected to the LRC.