Methanol found in blood of South African teenagers who died in bar in June
- The teens died at a bar in East London’s Scenery Park township in the early hours of June 26
- Bar’s owner and some staff were arrested and are currently out on bail and face charges related to violating liquor laws, including selling to minors
The toxic chemical methanol has been identified as a possible cause of the deaths of 21 teenagers at a bar in the South African city of East London last month.
Methanol was found in all of their bodies and investigations are continuing to determine whether the levels of the toxic chemical were enough to have killed them.
“Methanol has been detected in all the 21 individuals that were there, however there is still progressive analysis of the quantitative levels of methanol and whether it could have been the final cause of death,” Dr. Litha Matiwane, Eastern Cape provincial deputy director for clinical service, said at press conference in East London Tuesday.
Authorities are still awaiting the conclusive results which are being conducted at a laboratory in the city of Cape Town, he said.
Methanol is a toxic form of alcohol that is used industrially as a solvent, pesticide or an alternative source of fuel. It is not used in the production of alcohol sold for human consumption.