21 teens who died in South African tavern all had toxic methanol in blood

A toxic chemical was found in the bodies of all 21 teenagers who died at Enyobeni Tavern in South Africa last month.

Methanol, a toxic form of alcohol that is often used as a solvent, pesticide or fuel, may be the cause of the death of 21 teenagers at a bar in East London, South Africa last month.

The toxic chemical was found in the bloodstreams of all 21 teenagers, whose lifeless bodies police found slumped over chairs and couches, lying on tables and sprawled on the dance floor at Enyobeni Tavern.

But investigators still aren’t sure if the levels found were high enough to have killed the teens.

“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 a press conference on Tuesday.

More conclusive results will come later, after a laboratory in Cape Town finishes its analysis, he said.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, methanol poisoning usually occurs when people drink beverages contaminated with the chemical, but inhaling high concentrations of methanol vapour has also proved to be just as toxic.

It’s unclear at this juncture how the 21 teens were poisoned with methanol.

Initially, authorities thought the victims had died because of alcohol poisoning or carbon monoxide inhalation, but both of these potential causes have since been ruled out, said Matiwane.