The four SA National Defence Force soldiers who died of carbon monoxide poisoning while on duty earlier this month will be buried with military honours. Among them is Private LRT Mpolokeng from the Northern Cape, whose funeral will be held in Kimberley on Saturday.
By Robin-Lee Francke
THE FOUR South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers who died of carbon monoxide poisoning while on duty earlier this month will be buried with military honours. Among them is Private LRT Mpolokeng from the Northern Cape, whose funeral will be held in Kimberley on Saturday.
The soldiers were found dead inside a container structure used as a guard house while on 24-hour duty in Orkney, North West, on July 6. They had lit a fire inside the container to stay warm during a sub-zero blizzard and succumbed to carbon monoxide poisoning.
They were discovered during a change of shift. The police were called to the scene and found all four dead, with their rifles and personal items on them.
The soldiers had been deployed to Shaft 3, a dormant mining shaft in Orkney near the disused Harry Oppenheimer Stadium, a known hot spot for illegal mining.
The SANDF released a statement on Friday naming the deceased as Lance Corporal LS Mbongwa, Private MS Manganyi, Private LRT Mpolokeng and Private MP Nzukela.
Lance Corporal Mbongwa has already been buried with military honours in Mafunze Location, Elandskop, Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal.
This weekend, the other three soldiers will be laid to rest.
The funeral of Private Mpolokeng will be held at the Kimberley Recreation Hall and the procession will then proceed to West End Cemetery for burial.
The funeral of Private Manganyi will be held at Stand No 582 in Nwamarhanga village in Giyani, Limpopo, while the funeral of Private Nzukela will be held in Ngunjini village in Umzimkhulu, KZN.
The Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, Angie Motshekga, and the Deputy Ministers of Defence and Military Veterans, Bantu Holomisa and Richard Hlophe, together with the Secretary for Defence, Dr Thobekile Gamede, as well as the Chief of the SANDF, General Rudzani Maphwanya, conveyed their condolences to the families of the deceased soldiers and the entire defence family.
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