A 17-YEAR-OLD Durban schoolboy remains in a fight for his life after a stabbing incident, last month, on the premises of the school he attended.
The family of Joshua Peterson, a pupil at West Ridge High School near Mayville, were concerned about his prospects of making a complete recovery from the life-threatening injuries he sustained, to achieving his dreams and ambitions.
The youngster is being treated at a Durban hospital.
Trevor Peterson, the boy’s father, described the attack on his son, who was stabbed twice in his neck and abdomen, as "devastating."
“He is in diaper. He can’t walk by himself. Joshua is basically bedridden. He can’t do anything for himself currently. It is devastating for me as a parent to see my son in that condition. No parent wants to go through such trauma,” said Peterson, as he struggled to contain his emotions.
Peterson said their anguish was heightened by him and his family being kept in the “dark” about how the investigation of the incident was proceeding.
“We have many questions to ask, but we are being left in the dark. One of the questions is how did the weapon enter the school premises. Where were the teachers when my child was attacked?
“These are all the things we want to ask,” said Peterson.
West Ridge High School is a trade school where pupils are given an education and hands-on skills training in certain trades.
“Some teachers were already looking to find Joshua a job at the time of the incident, but that has been put on hold as he fights for his life at the hospital,” remarked Trevor.
Peterson said it pained him to see his son lying on a hospital bed instead of forging ahead with his dreams.
“I wanted to see my son grow and become a responsible man with his own family. How is he going to do that now if he is in such a state?”
Like Peterson, Joshua’s uncle, Fernando Petersen, was equally shattered.
“It is beyond painful to see Joshua, who is like a son to me, lying in hospital, in such a bad state,” said Fernando.
He accused the Department of Education of not assisting them with counselling.
“No department official has ever come to us to offer us counselling as a family. We are all by ourselves, going through this ordeal. We have to come to the hospital twice a day, and we fork out that money from our pockets,” said Fernando.
He said they would not give up until Joshua was back on his feet again.
“Joshua is our son, and we fight as a family to make sure that he comes out of the hospital and continues with his life. We will not give up,” said Fernando.
Responses from the SAPS and the provincial Department of Education were awaited.
The Daily News understands that an accused person has appeared in court after the incident, and the matter was postponed to March 6.
Joshua’s stabbing was not an isolated incident, bringing into question the issue of safety at schools.
Last year, a 17-year-old pupil sustained critical injuries following a stabbing incident at a high school in the Merebank area, south of Durban.
ALS Paramedics said they responded at the time.
Their spokesperson, Garrith Jamieson said they attended to the 17-year-old male who was allegedly robbed and stabbed multiple times in his chest and his back.
“Our paramedics worked to stabilise the critically injured teenager before he was rushed to hospital for the urgent care he required.”
He said events leading up to the stabbing incident were unknown and subject to police investigation.
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