By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The body of Khayalethu Magadla, the 6-year-old who slipped and fell into a manhole in Dlamini Park, Soweto has been found on Saturday afternoon at the Eldorado Park Cemetery wastewater plant.
Johannesburg Emergency Medical Services (EMS) spokesperson Nana Radebe said the boy’s body was recovered shortly after midday.
Radebe said,Khayalethu Magadla was recovered by a rescue and recovery team comprising 35 EMS officials, Hazmat and urban search technicians, the water unit, K-9 unit, air wing, Delta Scan, ambulances from Gauteng and 60 members of Joburg Water.
The boy’s body was found in the splitter chamber of the first manhole towards the sump situated near Eldorado Cemetery.
City of Johannesburg MMC David Tembe said “The department sends the deepest condolences to the family in this time of difficulty and hope they find closure now that Khayalethu is found. Our teams worked tirelessly to ensure that the family finds closure.”
“The Urban Search and Rescue teams have covered atleast 20km from Dlamini to Eldorado Park, and Joburg Water has assisted immensely with drainage of water from different sewer systems,” added Tembe.
The six-year-old went missing almost three weeks ago after falling into an open manhole while playing with friends near his home.
It has been an excruciating 20 days for the family since the search began for the 6 year old boy. The EMS specialised team has consistently continued with the search through the challenging pipeline system, concluded Tembe.