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Tavern staircase collapses, killing eight people in S. Africa

Xinhua, June 29, 2015 Adjust font size:

Eight people were killed and six others injured on Sunday after a staircase in a tavern collapsed in Cape Town, police said.

The accident took place in Makhaza, Khayelitsha, an impoverished district in Cape Town, spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Andre Traut said.

Six died instantly and the other two died en-route to hospital when the vehicle they were transported in was involved in an accident, Traut said.

"It is alleged that a staircase fell down and collapsed with the people on it; six died on the scene and were transported to hospital in a private vehicle. The vehicle was also involved in an accident and two further fatalities occurred," said Traut.

He said the victims were all women between the ages of 15 and 23.

The six injured persons are between the ages of 17 and 24, Traut said.

The cause of the staircase collapse was not immediately known.

Traut said a culpable homicide case docket has been registered for the deaths. Endi