At least 20 teenagers found dead in a bar in South Africa

Tragedy in a South African town causes shock.
At least 20 teenagers were found dead in a bar.
Authorities made the macabre discovery on Sunday morning.

A tragedy has shocked the residents of a South African town. On Sunday morning, the authorities of the East London community reported on the macabre and shocking discovery of at least 20 teenagers found dead inside a bar and gave more details of what apparently happened.

According to the New York Times, at least 20 people, all thought to be between 13 and 17 years old, were found dead on Sunday morning in an East London tavern, in what is presumed to be a tragedy which is being investigated.

South African bar tragedy

Although investigators are still trying to determine what led to the deaths, initial reports cited by The New York Times, suggest that the bar or club was too full of people and it is presumed that a stampede could have broken out inside..

In the words of Unathi Binqose, the spokesperson for the Department of Security of the Eastern Cape Province, it is known that the victims are mostly, if not all, young people between 13 and 17 years of age and authorities are still trying to identify them while television networks are already talking about the tragedy.

Relatives of the victims of the bar tragedy in South Africa ask for information

As local and international media began to echo the terrible tragedy in the bar, several people, mostly relatives of those who died, gathered outside the modest building where the incident occurred because the tavern or club called Enyobeni Tavern was in the center of East London.

Police officers and began investigating the neighborhood of Scenery Park, northeast of East London where the incident took place: «We really cannot understand what happened here,» commented one of the officials on the case, Oscar Mabuyane.

Emergency calls came in at 4 AM

«It can’t be, there would be no way for this to happen like this,» Oscar Mabuyane told reporters. A police spokesman, Tembinkosi Kinana, commented that they received several emergency calls around 4 a.m. the morning they were being alerted about apparent deaths at the tavern.

Apparently, there was a big party there on Saturday night, featuring two DJs who were celebrating their birthdays, as well the end of the mask mandate in public spaces.

They couldn’t control the crowd and tragedy struck

«The event attracted a large number of people, more than the place could hold,» said the police spokesman while the owners of the place told them that they tried to control the crowd by closing the doors of the bar. Everything got out of control when people outside tried to force their way in by pushing the door.

When they grew desperate to enter the place, panic broke out among the people, which was exacerbated when a person apparently sprayed pepper spray: «There are many stories that they have told us,» said an officer, but there still isn’t an official version and, as of now, everything is being investigated. The death toll has risen to 20, but there’s fear that it could rise.