“I imagined him smiling with his baby teeth. No words can express how I feel losing my brother.”
These are the words of John, a friend of Fillemon Primus (33), the paramedic student who died on 4 April during a training exercise at the City of Windhoek Emergency Training Centre.
John says it has always been his friend’s dream to further his medical studies at the Namibia University of Science and Technology (Nust).
“He finally got accepted at his dream university . . . but today . . . we are standing here burying him,” he posted on Facebook after Primus’ recent funeral service.
City of Windhoek spokesperson Lydia Amutenya says Primus was participating in confined space training as part of his second-year bachelor of emergency medical care course when tragedy struck.
It is, however, unclear what exactly happened, and the incident is currently being investigated, she says.
“Immediate basic life support measures were initiated, and the student was promptly transported to Katutura Intermediate Hospital for further medical attention,” Amutenya says.
But Primus did not regain consciousness.
His family is shattered.
“Primus was one of those people you could always count on in our family. He was an amazing son, the best brother, and a great father to his only son.
“He has left a big hole that nobody will ever be able to fill,” says his grandmother, Eveline Fininika, who raised Primus since he was nine months old.
Fininika says Primus loved joking and debating.
“He was my biggest motivation and he never let anyone down,” she says.
Nust spokesperson John Haufiku says it is unclear what caused the incident.
“The Department of Clinical Health Sciences at Nust, which offers the qualification, together with the City of Windhoek, is cooperating with law enforcement officers and health professionals who will determine the cause,” he says in a media statement released last week.
He says the students involved in the incident are receiving psycho-social support through the university.
“Primus was a qualified intermediate life support provider with pre-hospital industry experience. He was a promising student, furthering his education by pursuing his passion to become an advanced life support paramedic,” Haufiku says.
He says Primus will be dearly missed by his, fellow students and lecturers.
Meanwhile, John says when he received the news of his friend’s death, he could not believe it, because Primus was always full of life.
“I have learnt a lot from my friend. I have known him since 2018 at Tsumeb, and I stand here today because of him,” he says.
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