CORRECT CORPSE FINALLY BURIED AFTER MIX-UP

LUHLEKO – The Simelane family has finally laid their rightful loved one to rest.

After the traumatic ordeal the family endured in burying a woman they believed to be their mother Gabisile Simelane, they were able to obtain a court order late on Wednesday evening to lay Make Simelane to rest.

According to impeccable sources close to the matter, the family obtained the court order on Wednesday evening, which gave them the authority to exhume the unknown woman’s body, and finally bury their mother at the family burial site at Luhleko.

The burial of the correct body of Make Simelane was done that very evening after the court order was obtained.

It is said that Dups Funeral Home and Crematorium personnel arrived at the Simelane home at around 7pm on Wednesday in a hearse, carrying the body of Make Simelane. 

Exhuming 

They assisted in exhuming the buried corpse, which they took with them back to the funeral home.

With Ministry of Health officials and police officers from Malkerns Police Station present, Make Simelane was laid to rest about an hour after the arrival of personnel from Dups.

Community members also came to assist the Simelane family to exhume the body of the unknown woman. 

The unknown body was then transported back to Dups on the same evening. The news was also confirmed by a Simelane family representative, Isaiah Hlatshwayo, who said that Make Simelane had been buried on Wednesday evening. 

However, when questioned on whether the family had found peace after finally laying Make Simelane to rest, Hlatshwayo requested not to comment any further, as he could not properly articulate how the family felt, especially because it was such a large family.

“I cannot clearly articulate the sentiments of the entire family, but we are still mourning the loss of our mother,” he said.

Meanwhile, Luhleko Headman Muzi Maseko said the community of Luhleko heaved a sigh of relief after Make Simelane’s body arrived and was respectfully laid to rest, adding that the family needed to pray and find peace on the matter.

On the other hand, Dups Funeral Home and Crematorium General Manager Kyle De Sousa said they owned up to their mistake and everything had been resolved.

Ailments 

Leading up to the exhumation of the unknown woman’s body, De Sousa said this happened at the peak of death figures due to COVID-19-related ailments. The funeral parlour has been a hive of activity in recent weeks as COVID-19-related deaths are daily reported in double digits. 

“It was a human error that occurred as a result of breach of our strict identification procedures. The error occurred when a corpse was released to another family. The high number of corpses that our staff handle per day and night has resulted in excessive physical and mental fatigue brought about by long hours of work,” De Sousa said.

He again extended an apology to all concerned parties and the distress this had caused. He said after it was brought to the funeral parlour’s attention that a mistake had happened, action was taken immediately.

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