The bodies of four South African friends who drowned while holidaying in Mozambique arrived in the country on Wednesday morning, according to family spokesperson Bongani Diako.
Diako told African News Agency (ANA) on Wednesday morning that the bodies had arrived just after 7am and were being kept at a funeral parlour until they were redirected to their families.
Lesego Matsepe, 20, Gregory Mfune, 27, David Kaise, 29, and Mmatholo Mogafe, 24, died last week after a drowning accident at one of Mozambique’s popular tourist destinations.
The friends were part of a group of eight tourists that arrived in Mozambique on January 13 and were staying in Maputo as part of a birthday celebration. On Monday 14, they took a trip to the Portuguese Islands for a swim, where the drownings occurred – allegedly due to strong tides.
“We were delayed at the border but the bodies are now home. They are in a [local parlour] and those that need to be redirected to their home provinces will be,” said Diako.
In a statement released on Tuesday night, Diako said that Gregory Mfune’s burial would take place on Saturday in the Free State town of Bethlehem at Thokoza High School, starting 7.30am.
David Kaise would be buried on Saturday in Embalenhle, Mpumalanga.
Diako said that as a result of close family ties, a joint funeral would be held on Sunday for Lesego Matsepe and Mmatholo Mogafe, who were both from Groblersdal, Limpopo.
He told ANA that he was thankful for the role the media had played in the “journey”, and said the funerals would be open to journalists.
African News Agency (ANA)
