by David Shedrack
- A three-year-old girl died after the inverter keeping her breathing machine on ran out of battery power on Thursday.
- City Power said the impact of load shedding implemented by Eskom is “hitting families hard”.
- The child will be buried next Wednesday.
A three-year-old girl reportedly died after the inverter powering her breathing machine ran out of charge as a result of load shedding.
The child suffered from a rare neurodevelopmental disorder called Woree Syndrome which causes drug-resistant epilepsy and global developmental delay.
According to the Randburg Sun, the girl died on Thursday in her mother’s arms.
The family, from Bromhof, had rushed to hospital after the inverter ran flat during load shedding and could not be fully charged due to subsequent planned outages for maintenance.
The mother told the publication she tried to nebulise her daughter with a backup battery-operated nebuliser, which had brought her child some relief.
Electricity was restored after load shedding, but four hours later, the power went out again.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said the impact of load shedding implemented by Eskom “is hitting families hard”, where many have lost livelihoods and appliances.
“It is hard even for us when lives also get lost because of this national crisis.”
Mangena said the utility acknowledged residents’ concerns about recent recurring outages in Bromhof and was working on a plan to resolve this problem.
On Thursday, part of Bromhof had planned maintenance outages between 08:00 and 16:00, to service equipment and stabilise the network.
“During outages, we always keep residents updated with developments to restore the power supply. In the case of medical conditions, City Power cannot guarantee an uninterrupted power supply. Therefore, it encourages residents with medical conditions to have a backup system or plans to keep their devices on at all times,” said Mangena.
Ward councillor Ralf Bittkau, said this incident saddened him.
“My sincere condolences go out to the parents and family. I lost my daughter in December, and I couldn’t cope, so I understand the pain the family is going through. I had to excuse myself from WhatsApp groups because it was too painful,” said Bittkau.
Bitkkau said load shedding and power outages had pushed him to his limit.
“It all boils down to the fact that Eskom is failing. It has never-ending problems. I want to take this as far as possible and take it to the top. If the president doesn’t do anything, he’s also as guilty. It’s enough,” said Bittkau.
The mother told News24 that the family is busy preparing for the funeral which will take place on 31 May.
