-
FILE | Crowd gathers as forensic personnel investigate after the deaths of patrons found inside the Enyobeni Tavern, in Scenery Park, outside East London in the Eastern Cape
A medical expert is expected to conclude her testimony in the Enyobeni inquest when it resumes in the East London Regional Court sitting in Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape on Monday.
Doctor Sithandiwe Kunyuza previously testified that asphyxia or a deprivation of oxygen was the leading cause of the deaths of the 21 teenagers at the Enyobeni tavern in June 2022.
She was one of the doctors who examined some of the deceased at the tavern on that fateful day.
The post-mortem also found blood spots on the eyes, liver, heart and kidneys of all of the 21 victims.
Some also had a swollen brain, and fluid was also found in the lungs of the deceased.
Dr Kunyuza attributed these complications to increased pressure on the body. She says that although there was a presence of methanol and carbon monoxide in all the deceased, it was not enough to cause death.
“There was a small bleeding in the covering of the brain, there was bleeding in the heart muscle, a large area of homology in the stomach. There were homologies in the liver, the cause of death was established as crush asphyxia in a person with alcohol intoxication.”
A similar report by Dr Solomon Zondi further suggests that a delay in reporting the disaster contributed to the deaths.
The families of the deceased have been demanding answers.
