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Durban girls crushed after wall collapse remembered as 'bubbly, happy' children

Distraught family members of two Durban children, who were crushed to death after a retaining wall collapsed on them in Clare Estate, recalled how they were playing together before tragedy struck.

Siziphiwe Libazi, 7, and Sisanda Ndlala, 5, were playing in the driveway of Libazi's home on Kennedy Road when the incident occurred on Monday afternoon.

A third child, who had also been playing with them at the time, has been hospitalised for her injuries.

The police are investigating what led to the collapse and KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Colonel Thembeka Mbele, said on Monday that the wall was part of the driveway.

"Siziphiwe was the light of my life and she kept me going," her mother Inga Libazi told News24 on Tuesday.

She added that there was nothing that could help her get over the loss of her child.

READ: Two girls killed in wall collapse in Durban

"I just do not understand why it is happening. When I first heard, I got so mad. She was a good child. She was bright and full of life. All she was doing was playing with her friends. I loved her so much. She was always so happy."

Siziphiwe lived with her grandmother Lungelwa at the property on Kennedy Road.

"It is hard for us right now. She was our baby. She stayed with me. She was so intelligent in school. She was our very special baby," she said.

Roxana Naseem, another woman who lives in a separate building on the property told News24 that Siziphiwe was "like my own".

"She used to play with my grandchild. They were good friends. She used to love it when I gave her sweets. She was also very intelligent in school. I can describe her as a happy go lucky child."

Ndlala's aunt Hawa Kuka said her family was also struggling to cope with the sudden loss.

"She was bubbly and energetic. She just started her second term in school and was full of dreams and hopes."

"It is extremely hard for [Ndlala's] mother. She can barely talk."

Municipal officials were on the scene analysing the aftermath of the wall collapse.

The eThekwini Municipality did not immediately comment on the incident.

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