Methanol was found in the blood samples from all the deceased, but tests are still being done to determine whether it was at a lethal level, said Dr Litha Matiwane from the Eastern Cape health department. “You can ingest it, but it is also a by-product of some other chemicals. We are waiting for those results,” Matiwane said. He said the victims’ blood alcohol levels were not fatal, nor were their carbon monoxide levels. “We are looking for other things like by-products of methanol,” he added, explaining that the gastric contents of the deceased were being analysed to get a better picture of what happened.

Dr Litha Matiwane from the Eastern Cape health department at the Cambridge Police Station in East London on Tuesday, where he provided details about the death of 21 youngsters in the Enyobeni Tavern tragedy. ( Photo: Hoseya Jubase)[/caption] The 21 victims – the youngest was just 13 – died in the Enyobeni Tavern in Scenery Park in the early hours of 26 June 2022. The manager of the tavern, Siyakhangela Ndevu (52), was arrested last week to appear in court on charges of contravening the Liquor Act. Two of his employees were given the chance to pay a fine and avoid court. The liquor licence for the tavern is in the name of Ndevu’s wife, Vuyokazi. The tavern was closed down shortly after the incident.

Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane (left) and Police Minister Bheki Cele address the media at the Cambridge Police Station in East London on Tuesday on the forensic investigation into the deaths of 21 teenagers in Scenery Park. On Tuesday morning a delegation of senior government officials, including Police Minister Bheki Cele, Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane and his health MEC, Nomakhosazana Meth, gathered at the Cambridge Police Station in East London to brief the families of the deceased. Mabuyane said he realised the families needed more emotional support because their pain ran very deep and some had lost their only children.