The Durban high court has ordered the KwaZulu-Natal education department to pay a former pupil R3.9m in damages after three of his toes had to be amputated when a guillotine was accidentally dropped onto his right foot at school.
The damages awarded to Senzo Chiliza, 24, an ex-pupil of a pre-vocational school, included R623,712 for future medical expenses, R3.3m for loss of earnings and R500,000 for general damages.
Judge Mfuniselwa Nkosi also ordered the department to pay Chiliza’s foster mother, Basanthie Naidoo, R168,025 for his past medical expenses.
The incident took place on March 1 2013 when he and other pupils were allegedly instructed by a teacher to move a guillotine in the plumbing workshop.
As they did so, it was accidentally dropped on Chiliza’s right foot, causing him serious injury which resulted in his three toes being amputated on March 18 2013 after they developed gangrene.
In early 2014 he developed symptoms of neuroma in his right foot and was hospitalised for three days for further surgery.
The trial for the determination of liability was held in 2016, when the department was found to be liable “for any and all such damages” that Chiliza and Naidoo are able to prove.
Legal representatives for the department did not attend the trial to determine quantum which took place over three days last month.
According the judgment handed down on September 16, Chiliza “was unable to continue with his education at the school due to difficulty in climbing the stairs to attend lessons”.
“Over the years, he has been in constant pain, not only from his injured right foot but also from the other affected parts of his body, such as his lower and upper leg, as well as his right hip.
Over the years, he has been in constant pain, not only from his injured right foot but also from the other affected parts of his body, such as his lower and upper leg, as well as his right hip.
“The other problems he experienced included, inter alia, massive weight gain due to his inability to engage in physical exercise, lack of self-esteem, as well as depression, to the extent that he even contemplated committing suicide,” the judgment read.
He said he had always regarded Naidoo and her husband as his parents since he was 10 years old. They were appointed his foster parentsafter the death of his mother, who was their domestic worker.
Naidoo, 68, testified at length about the difficulties experienced by Chiliza over the years as the result of the amputation of his toes and the family’s efforts to help him regain his self-esteem.
She said had he not been injured, “he probably would have finished school and, in time, started his own artisan business as a plumber or welder with financial assistance from her and other members of her family”.
Jade Botha, an occupational therapist, told the court that Chiliza “would require some form of occupation in the sedentary category with light duty components, provided that he found a sympathetic employer who was prepared to grant him such opportunity”.
“Given his vocational screening and significantly impaired performance levels within administrative and technical based skills, he would battle to secure occupation even within a sedentary category environment.”
She said that at a realistic level “he would find it extremely difficult to compete with the multitude of other job seekers who are likely to be better equipped than him, with no physical or mental impairments”.
The judgment stated that Botha was concerned that Chiliza “would probably be doomed to a lifetime of rejected job applications in the sedentary administrative environment”.
Judge Nkosi also ordered the department to pay Chiliza and Naidoo’s travelling and subsistence costs from Gauteng to Durban to attend the trial in September, as well as the travelling and subsistence costs of their legal counsel who had to travel to Gauteng to consult with them before the trial.
The department was also ordered to pay for the costs of the expert witnesses.
Attempts to contact Chiliza and Naidoo’s legal representative proved fruitless.
Legal claims lodged against the KZN education department stood at R1.1bn at the end of March this year.
The department did not respond to enquiries at the time of publication.
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