Man drowns during staff party

A 35-year-old man from Ekupheleni has died after drowning in a swimming pool during a staff party at Dwaleni Inkwazi Gateway in the early hours of yesterday morning.

The tragic incident occurred at around 6am at the lodge, where the man and a group of his colleagues had booked accommodation for an overnight stay. According to information gathered at the scene, the group arrived at the premises at approximately 9pm on Saturday in a Toyota Quantum and spent the night socialising.

A staff member at Dwaleni Inkwazi Gateway, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the group appeared to be in high spirits, enjoying music and alcoholic beverages throughout the night.

“They arrived in the evening and spent the whole night here. There was music and drinks, and everything seemed normal,” said the staff member.

The staff member further explained that the group continued drinking into the early hours of the morning. At some point, they decided to swim.

“In the morning, they were still having drinks and listening to music when they decided to get into the swimming pool,” the staff member said.

During the swimming session, a female member of the group reportedly began to struggle in the water. The deceased is said to have attempted to rescue her.

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“One of the ladies started drowning, and the deceased tried to save her. While the rest of the group was busy helping the woman and trying to resuscitate her, they did not notice that the man could not get out of the pool,” the staff member explained.

Moments later, the group realised that the man was also in distress.

“They suddenly saw the man in the water and realised he was drowning as well, but by then it was too late. Emergency services and police were called, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene,” the staff member added.

Dwaleni Inkwazi Gateway Hotel Manager Samu Kunene confirmed that the establishment was aware of the incident but said management could not comment further at this stage.

“We are aware of the incident, but we cannot comment at the moment as we are still waiting for a report from the police. The family also needs to be formally notified,” Kunene said.

Meanwhile, Deputy Police Information and Communications Officer (PICO), Assistant Superintendent Nosipho Mnguni, confirmed the drowning incident.

“We can confirm that a 35-year-old man drowned in the early hours of yesterday morning at Dwaleni Inkwazi Gateway. Investigations are ongoing to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident,” Mnguni said.

She added that police were appealing to members of the public to exercise caution when consuming alcohol, especially around swimming pools, as such environments can be dangerous.