South African officials: 22 teenagers found dead in a bar. No one knows how they died.
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South African authorities are investigating after 22 teenagers celebrating end-of-school exams died in a mysterious incident at a nightclub.
The teens' bodies were found at the Enyobeni Tavern in East London, a city in the country's Eastern Cape, with reports saying they had no visible wounds or signs of injury.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa posted on Twitter that the teen's bodies were discovered at the bar in the Scenery Park area early Sunday.
"My deepest condolences go to the families of the 22 teenagers who lost their lives," Ramaphosa wrote. "This tragedy is made even more grave by its occurrence during Youth Month – a time during which we celebrate young people."
Most of the victims, ages 13-17, were discovered by police lying on tables, slumped over chairs and sprawled on the floor of the club, police said. Their cause of death remained under investigation Monday, police spokesperson Col. Athlenda Mathe said.
Police Minister Bheki Cele said forensic samples taken from the victims were being sent to a toxicology laboratory in Cape Town, indicating that police were investigating whether the victims had ingested a poison or toxin.
Toxicology test results are pending, Cele said.
My deepest condolences go to the families of the 22 teenagers who lost their lives at a tavern in Scenery Park, East London, in the early hours of this morning.
— Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) June 26, 2022
Provincial safety official Unathi Binqose told the Daily Maverick newspaper that the victims may have ingested a toxic substance through alcohol they were drinking or through hookah pipes being smoked at the party.
Authorities said they found no visible signs of injuries on the victims.
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Police said they were called to the nightclub about 4 a.m. after receiving a report that there were “lifeless bodies” there.
Officers responding to the call found most of the teenagers already dead. Two others died at a local clinic, one died on the way to the hospital and one at the hospital.
Contributing: Associated Press.
Natalie Neysa Alund covers trending news for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: South Africa tavern deaths: 22 teens die in nightclub mystery
