Tragic suffocation of four children in Zambezi region under investigation

Zambezi regional police are investigating the deaths of four children who suffocated after getting stuck in an old freezer at the Cowboy location of Katima Mulilo yesterday.

The children have been identified as Precious Simataa (3), Matengu Chombo (3), Muzimisa Mwaka (4) and Lubilo Variety (6).

Their next of kin have been informed of their deaths.

Regional police commander and commissioner Andreas Shilelo confirmed the incident to The Namibian yesterday.

He said the children were last seen playing around the freezer and when one of the children’s guardian’s went looking for them later, they could not be found.

“Later, the guardian decided to look in the freezer, only to find the children inside of it. It’s alleged that the children, who were playing together, jumped into the old freezer but could not come out as the freezer locked. Two of the children were already dead in the freezer, while the other two that were rushed to the hospital were declared dead upon arrival,” he said.

Shilelo noted that investigations are still at an early stage to determine if this is a case of child negligence or whether there was any form of foul play.

The father of Precious, Aranges Shoro, speaking to The Namibian after she was rushed to the hospital yesterday, said when he came home for lunch, he found police cars and many community members surrounding his house.

“When I came in, I saw the paramedics attending to my daughter and another girl. They rushed them to the hospital, while the other two were loaded in the police mortuary vehicles.

“I am told that one of the other parents came looking for the children and saw their shoes next to the fridge. When they opened it, they found the children inside the freezer,” he said.

Last year, The Namibian reported several cases of children at villages dying after falling into buckets of traditional brew or falling off beds.

The police described these incidents as cases of negligence.

Social worker Veronica Theron at the time said sometimes child abuse is a form of revenge against the other parent.

A lack of anger management and conflict resolution skills could also contribute to child abuse, she said.

“Children abandoned and left with relatives or elderly grandparents with no means to take care of them and children having children with no proper parenting skills also contributes [to abuse and violence],” she said.

Theron highlighted that substance abuse could also lead to child neglect and abuse.

“The majority of abandoned babies are left unattended by parents with alcohol-related problems,” Theron said.

She added that parents who have witnessed or experienced abuse themselves are more inclined to abuse or neglect their own children or those in their care.