Goitseng Ntopi is a mother in mourning.
The 48-year-old speaks between stifled sobs as she tells of how, just four days earlier, she watched in helpless horror as her son was struck down by lightning.
Sefhare villager, Mompati Ntopi, 23, died on Thursday afternoon, his young life ended by a sudden strike from the sky.
Speaking to The Voice from her home in Serokweng ward, the mother-of-seven struggles to make sense of what happened.
Recounting the day her second born was cruelly taken away from her, Ntopi reveals she left for Murotse lands with Mompati and his brother.
“When we got there, Mompati and I went to fetch water at the river. He told me he wants black eye beans which we harvested and he cooked happily. Around 1600 hours I left them sitting under the morula tree to continue weeding,” she says, sitting forlornly on her mattress.
It was around then that the weather changed drastically.
Big winds started howling, storm clouds gathered, with thunder deafening and lightning flashes visible in the distance.
“I quickly dropped the hoe, hurried to the morula tree where my sons were standing. When I was about to approach them, I saw lightning striking the ground and in a blink of an eye they were both lying down. It was very tough. I said a short prayer asking God to give me strength so I check on my children if they were still alive.”
Her prayers were only half-answered; one son was alive, the other dead.
“It was clear Mompati was no more. Quickly, I stood up and ran to our neighbours screaming for help,” recalls Ntopi, fighting back tears.
Alerted by her shrieks, people from the nearby farms arrived.
The police were called and Ntopi and her two sons taken to Sefhare Primary Hospital; Mompati was confirmed dead while, relatively unscathed, his brother was treated and released.
Although the incident has left a piercing pain in her heart, Ntopi is in no doubt it was a freak, tragic act of nature and not a curse by some vindictive villager.
“Nothing like this has ever happened to our family before, we are in shock. My son was a well behaved child who loved his brothers and sisters. He leaves behind six siblings and did not have a child,” she closes quietly.
For his part, Machaneng Station Commander, Gagopale Gaselarona confirmed his officers received the report on Thursday evening, adding the deceased’s body was retrieved from under a tree.
Superintendent Gaselarona added it is the first time anyone has been killed by lightning in his jurisdiction.
