Mortuary stats show violent deaths rise in Gauteng
'These figures are the most reliable indicator that violent deaths are increasing in Gauteng as bodies don’t lie'
Statistics from Gauteng’s 10 state mortuaries show a continuing rise in violent deaths, says Jack Bloom, MPL, DA Gauteng shadow MEC for health.
“I obtained these figures from a Promotion of Access to Information Act (PAIA) application to the Gauteng Health Department. Violent deaths from gunshots, stab wounds and assault rose from 3 846 in 2014/15 to 4 138 in 2015/16,” he said in a statement on Thursday.
“These deaths accounted for 32 per cent of the causes of unnatural death for bodies in Gauteng mortuaries last year.”
The breakdown is as follows:
Shot: 1 854 deaths, up from 1 608
Stabbed: 1 338 deaths, up from 1 257
Assaults: 946 deaths, down from 981
Bloom said traffic accidents accounted for 27 per cent of the deaths in 2014/15, increasing to 3 444 deaths from 3 088 the previous year.
Hanging is another high cause of death with 874 deaths, which accounted for seven per cent of all deaths in that year.
Some other causes of death in 2015/16 (April 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016):
Burns – 702
Stillborn – 596
Poisoning – 679
Drowning – 249
Train accidents – 199
Electric shock – 144
Strangulation – 75
Suffocation – 32
Lightning – 17
“These figures are the most reliable indicator that violent deaths are increasing in Gauteng as bodies don’t lie. It is very disturbing as it shows that policing and road safety campaigns are failing to curb the high number of violent deaths in Gauteng,” Bloom added.
