Mikayla was killed by speeding motorists while trying to cross a street in Eastridge, Mitchells Plain.
- A grief-stricken Grassy Park couple is struggling to come to terms with the loss of their 13-year-old daughter, who died when she was struck by a car on Monday.
- Mikayla Scholtz was visiting her grandmother’s house in Mitchells Plain when the incident occurred.
- The police have opened a manslaughter case.
A grieving Grassy Park couple is mourning the death of their 13-year-old daughter, who tragically died when she was struck by a car on AZ Berman Drive in Mitchells Plain on Monday.
Mikayla Scholtz was visiting her grandmother’s house in Mitchells Plain over the holidays when the accident occurred.
The teens’ distraught parents, Berlita and Shaun, said: “My wife and I were relaxing at home when we got the call to say that something happened to Mikayla, and that we need to get to Mitchells Plain immediately.”
“At the time, we really didn’t know what had happened and we couldn’t understand what the friend was trying to say, so we went to the scene,” Shaun said.
The couple said that when they arrived on the scene on AZ Berman Drive, their daughter’s body lay in the middle of the street, covered with a white sheet, as dozens of onlookers lined the pavement.
“Tears began to run down our faces,” a heartbroken Berlita said of the moment they walked to the scene and knelt next to the body of her little girl.
“It’s still hard to imagine that she’s not here anymore. My heart bleeds for my precious princess. I can’t believe this has happened. I can’t believe this is how we’re starting our new year. It’s just awful.”
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Western Cape Police spokesman Sergeant Wesley Twigg said a wrongful death case had been opened.
“Police are investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of a 13-year-old girl following a crash on AZ Berman Drive, Eastridge, Monday afternoon. Paramedics pronounced the victim dead at the scene. No one has been arrested.” , said. saying.
Mikayla’s father had the daunting task of identifying his daughter’s body at the morgue on Tuesday, a task he describes as “the worst experience of his life.”
“No one will ever understand how horrible it is to go see your daughter’s body in a morgue and see her on the table in the same clothes we bought her.
An excited Shaun said:
I don’t think I’ll ever recover from that. I cried so much that I even got a headache, because I can’t believe my daughter is no longer alive.
Berlita said she was encouraged by the support from the community that had been there to help the family since their ordeal began.
Meanwhile, residents claim they have previously lobbied the city of Cape Town to install a robot or even speed bumps in the area to stop drivers from speeding down the road.
“This AZ Berman road is very dangerous and we need drastic changes here to stop motorists from speeding,” said the Warda Cay resident.
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The City’s Urban Mobility Directorate said it would investigate the location and circumstances of the accident to determine if there were any engineering measures that could help prevent similar accidents.
“AZ Berman is a higher order arterial route, and as such, physical traffic calming measures such as speed bumps and raised crosswalks are not appropriate forms of speed control. Speed limit enforcement it’s the right measure on arterial routes,” spokesman Rob Quintas said.
For the Grassy Park parents, their agony is multiplied as preparations for their daughter’s funeral begin.
It is expected to take place next week at Grassy Park.
“No parent should have to go through this. I wish I could tell the man who did this to my son, that he destroyed our family. He has no idea how we feel. I pray and hope that justice befalls him.” Berlit said.
Mikayla leaves behind her parents and two brothers.
