Teargas shot into house with babies inside during Middelburg protest

Middelburg mother alleges teargas fired into home during protest

A Middelburg mother of four, including two-month-old twins, has alleged that teargas fired during a protest entered her home, resulting in one of her infants being rushed to hospital.

According to the mother, the incident occurred on Wednesday during protest action in Middelburg. She says she and others were standing on the stoep of her home, watching events unfold in the street when police officers began firing at protesters.

She alleges that as shots were fired, they ran inside the house for safety. After a short while, she says they came back out onto the stoep.

The mother claims that an uncle from a neighbouring house then warned police officers not to fire teargas because there were babies inside the home. She alleges that an officer responded by threatening the man, saying he would shoot him dead.

According to the mother, moments later teargas was fired directly towards her house, entering the sitting room where one of her babies was lying.

She alleges that her mother immediately picked up the baby and moved her into another room as people outside shouted that they must leave the house. During the confusion, the mother says a neighbour took the baby from her mother as they fled to a cousin’s house nearby.

“When we got to my cousin’s house, the baby was not responding,” the mother alleged. “We threw water on her, but nothing happened. She was not breathing.”

She claims neighbours rushed them to hospital, where doctors immediately attended to the infant. According to the mother, medical staff informed her that the baby had stopped breathing and that they struggled to revive her before managing to stabilise her.

“I was terrified. I thought my babies were going to die, especially when she didn’t respond to us,” she alleged.

The following day, the mother says she went to the local police station to open a complaint against the officer she believes fired the teargas. She alleges that police officials told her a case could not be opened because police were not to blame for the incident.

She maintains that there was no justification for teargas to be used near a residential home where infants were present.

Komani News requested comment from the South African Police Service spokesperson regarding the alleged use of teargas during the protest in Middelburg, as well as clarity on SAPS procedures for civilians wishing to lodge complaints against police officers.

No response was received at the time of publishing.

This article will be updated should a response be provided.