The death toll from a family massacre in central KwaZulu-Natal has risen to eight‚ after two young children who were rescued from a burning rondavel died in hospital.
This comes after two homes belonging to the Sibiya family were attacked late on Tuesday night in the village of Amatimatolo. TimesLIVE previously reported that police were alerted to the mass slaying by members of the community‚ who were awoken by the sound of gunfire. The neighbours reportedly emerged from their homes to find a rondavel ablaze.
“The community members checked and saw the house on fire and five family members were inside‚” said KZN SAPS spokeswoman Captain Nqobile Gwala. “Attempts were made to rescue the family but unfortunately the fire was uncontrollable. All five family members died at the scene.”
She said that bystanders then noticed another rondavel‚ 100 meters from the first‚ was also on fire. “The community members managed to rescue three children‚ who sustained burn wounds but unfortunately a 58-year-old woman died at the scene.”
She said that two of the children later died in hospital.
ANC provincial spokesperson Mdumiseni Ntuli said the party was “devastated” by the slaying‚ the work of an apparent assassin.
“Details regarding the brutal murder of Sibiya family members remain sketchy but it appears that an unknown assassin stormed into two family homes and opened fire‚ leaving seven females dead. The killers also doused the houses with the deceased with petrol and set them alight‚” he said.
“Clearly something is not right in our province. It needs all of us beyond political affiliations to join hands in an effort to defeat this new tendency‚” Ntuli added.
Death toll in KZN family shooting rises to 8
The death toll from a family massacre in central KwaZulu-Natal has risen to eight‚ after two young children who were rescued from a burning rondavel died in hospital.
This comes after two homes belonging to the Sibiya family were attacked late on Tuesday night in the village of Amatimatolo. TimesLIVE previously reported that police were alerted to the mass slaying by members of the community‚ who were awoken by the sound of gunfire. The neighbours reportedly emerged from their homes to find a rondavel ablaze.
“The community members checked and saw the house on fire and five family members were inside‚” said KZN SAPS spokeswoman Captain Nqobile Gwala. “Attempts were made to rescue the family but unfortunately the fire was uncontrollable. All five family members died at the scene.”
She said that bystanders then noticed another rondavel‚ 100 meters from the first‚ was also on fire. “The community members managed to rescue three children‚ who sustained burn wounds but unfortunately a 58-year-old woman died at the scene.”
She said that two of the children later died in hospital.
ANC provincial spokesperson Mdumiseni Ntuli said the party was “devastated” by the slaying‚ the work of an apparent assassin.
“Details regarding the brutal murder of Sibiya family members remain sketchy but it appears that an unknown assassin stormed into two family homes and opened fire‚ leaving seven females dead. The killers also doused the houses with the deceased with petrol and set them alight‚” he said.
“Clearly something is not right in our province. It needs all of us beyond political affiliations to join hands in an effort to defeat this new tendency‚” Ntuli added.