'I got a call to say he just stopped breathing' - Bob Mabena's last moments

Bob Mabena's wife, Eucharist, was driving him home from hospital on Monday when he suddenly suffered a cardiac arrest and stopped breathing. A few hours later, he was gone.

The veteran radio and TV host's death has sent shock waves across the nation, and left his family devastated.

“The family are at a stage where it is starting to settle in. As you can imagine, it was traumatic for everyone when we all found out initially. It is a roller-coaster ride, emotionally,” family spokesperson Winston Maimane told TshisaLIVE.

Winston said Bob first fell ill on Friday, and on Saturday was told by his doctor to go to hospital. He spent Saturday and Sunday in hospital receiving treatment and was told he would be discharged on Monday morning.

However, things took a turn for the worse once Bob left the hospital and was on his way home.

“I got a call from his wife while they were still driving home to say that he had basically just stopped breathing. She said they had just left the hospital and so I told her to make a U-turn and take him back.

“We all rushed there, me and some other friends of his, and we sat with his wife and four-year-old child for two hours while they tried to resuscitate him. Eventually, around two in the afternoon, they confirmed that he had passed.”

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Winston said Bob's death was sudden and when he had spoken to his friend on Sunday night the star was in high spirits.

“He was very upbeat. The conversation we had was to check up on his progress. He confirmed that he was leaving on Monday and we continued to have a normal conversation about getting him Nandos after leaving the hospital. He wasn't stressed. He was joking around.”

As someone who was one of his closest friends and shared many special moments with Bob, Winston said he was heartbroken by his friend's death.

“I lost a brother, that's all I know. I don't know how anyone fills a gap like this. He meant so much to everyone, especially his family. It is a big gap that has been created, it is massive.”