The death of an eight-year-old boy on Sunday in the Cape community of Manenberg has devastated the family, who were told that no ambulance was available to collect the child after he’d been injured by an exploding firecracker, reports the Cape Argus.
The mother of Toheer Lewis said her son began vomiting and complaining of severe headaches after a firecracker allegedly exploded near his ear while he was playing in the street outside his home.
Toheer's uncle said the boy ran to his mother immediately after the accident because his ear was bleeding. She reportedly applied ointment to the affected area, but he later complained about a terrible headache and was given Panado.
However, his condition deteriorated when he began vomiting, prompting his mother to contact emergency medical services. She was told no ambulance was available.
Several hours later, in the early hours of the morning, she reportedly received another call asking whether assistance was still required because no ambulance had yet become available.
She confirmed her son still needed medical attention and indicated that she was prepared to wait.
But the ambulance never arrived.
When his mother checked on Toheer the next morning, she found him stiff and unresponsive. On Monday, the family confirmed that the post-mortem process was still under way.
Community activist Yumna Alexander expressed frustration over the incident, saying the family believed earlier medical intervention might have saved his life.
She questioned how emergency services could inform a parent that an ambulance was unavailable when a child was displaying symptoms associated with a potentially serious head injury.
“Every second counts when it comes to needing emergency medical services,” she said.
Alexander added that the incident raised concerns about how vulnerable communities were treated when seeking essential state services, and is calling for a full investigation.
Spokesperson Siya Monakali for Ilitha Labantu, an NPO providing vital outreach services to the community, has also called for an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the boy’s death, urging the Western Cape Department of Health and Wellness to establish whether the emergency call was properly assessed, whether an ambulance could have been redirected, and what alternative assistance was offered.
“Any identified failures must result in appropriate accountability and corrective action.”
He said the department should review ambulance availability, staffing levels and emergency response coverage in underserved communities.
The department said it was treating “this matter with seriousness, and engaging with the relevant teams to determine the circumstances”.
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