Today, 20 November, we salute and honour the following men & woman who sacrificed their lives whilst standing in the defence of what they held dear at the time and against evil and tyranny.
SOUTH AFRICAN BORDER WAR
20 Nov 1983: 80466568PG Corporal Raymond Kenneth Eaton from Technical Service Corps attached to the Army Battle School was killed in a private motor vehicle accident at Boshoff. He was 17. (His rank is incorrectly reflected as Private on the Grave Headstone.)
20 Nov 1983: 70342662PE Chaplain Gerhardus Jacobus Rossouw from SWATF Headquarters was killed in a private motor vehicle accident in Windhoek. He was 29.
20 Nov 1985: 83398040BG Marine Ferdinand Ben Els from the 111 Harbour Protection Unit, South African Marines was killed in a military vehicle accident at Katima Mulilo. He was 18.
20 Nov 1987: 83610741BG Bombardier Lukas Marthinus Charl Havenga from 4 Artillery Regiment was attached to the 120mm Mortar section at the Lomba River during Ops Modular where he suffered a heart attack during operations and died before he could be evacuated to Rundu. He was 22.
20 Nov 1988: Three members from 6 Maintenance Unit were accidentally killed when their military vehicle overturned on the Bagani-Rundu road. They were:
- 87074357CK Private John Marloh. He was 20.
- 87074654CK Private Rodney Izaak Nelson. He was 20.
- 87074423CK Private Neville Swartz. He was 18.
RHODESIAN BUSH WAR
1966 – Gnr Geoffrey Stuart SCHONNBERG, 1st Field Regt, RhA, died in Harari Hospital, Salisbury, of a pulmonary fat embolism with fractured femur, sustained in a vehicle accident on 15 November 1966 near Makuti. He was 18 years old. He was attached to the Rhodesian Light Infantry at the time. L/Cpl John Korb was killed in the same accident.
1970 – Officer (Lt?) Thomas Hart BENNETT, 1st Bn, RAR, died in a vehicle accident on the Salisbury/Bulawayo road. He was 23 years old.
1973 – Cpl Kevin Robert BROWN, 2 Sigs Sqn, RhSigs, died from a gunshot wound in a shooting accident in the African barracks, JOC Bindura, Op Hurricane, at the age of 21. Kevin and a friend were playing a Halloween prank, with masks, when the shooting occurred. Suspicions surrounded the shooting because the African soldier, who shot Kevin, had a loaded and cocked FN in the barracks. The friend served a prison sentence for his part in the prank.
1976 – Cst Epison ZVIREVO, Uniform, BSAP, was murdered by CTs whilst on leave in the Bikita district, aged 21. Off-duty at the time, he was abducted and reported missing. His body was found on 31 December and buried the same day in a private funeral in the Nyajena TTL.
1978 – Pte Clever CHINGOZA, 4th Bn, RR, died in a vehicle accident.
1978 – Pte Richard ERIKANI, 2nd Bn, RAR, was killed in a shooting accident.
1979 – Spr Alfred N. DUBE, 3 Sqn, RhE, died of shrapnel wounds.
† Their names and sacrifices have not been forgotten †
0