The 42-year-old South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldier, Sergeant William Eddie Cola, will be buried in Louterwater in the Eastern Cape on Sunday.

Sergeant Cola was among the 14 SANDF members who died during a skirmish in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in January.

Brigadier General, Mbuyiselo Mongo, says the family remains very distraught.

“As we speak, the family is very emotional and fragile and it’s understandable. Since the arrival of the latest Sargeant in Pretoria, we’ve been in close contact with the family. The chaplain of the division and the social workers have been coming in and out to the family, even this morning, there was some medical care that had to be provided towards the family because of the situation in the family.”