Police in Mpumalanga are investigating two separate drowning tragedies that occurred at the Middelburg and Athlone dams between 7 and 9 December 2025, claiming the lives of three women and a 16-year-old boy.
The first incident began on Sunday afternoon, 7 December, when a group of six women reportedly went to pray near Towers Bridge at the foot of Middelburg Dam. While standing along the banks of the Klein Olifants River, the water level rose rapidly. Three of the women were swept away by the strong current, while the remaining three managed to cling to nearby tree branches until they were rescued by the Mpumalanga Police Search and Rescue Team.
Search efforts continued into Monday, 8 December, when two bodies were recovered downstream. Police later confirmed that family members reported three women missing, not two as initially believed. The third body was found approximately 10 kilometres further along the Klein Olifants River. An inquest has been opened.
Photo: Mpumalanga Police Search and Rescue Team.
In a separate incident on Monday, 8 December, police responded to another drowning at Athlone Dam in Aerorand, Middelburg. According to information received, a group of boys aged 13 to 16 had gone swimming when one of them — 16-year-old Mufaro Washesanda, a visiting foreign national — got into distress shortly after diving into the water. His friends attempted to assist him but were unable to do so and called 10111 for help. Police Search and Rescue retrieved the body, and EMS declared him dead on the scene. An inquest has also been opened in this matter.
Police have urged community members to exercise extreme caution around rivers and dams, especially during the rainy season when water levels can rise unexpectedly and currents become dangerously strong.