At least 22 people were found dead in a South African nightclub, according to reports.
The Daily Dispatch news site says that emergency services were called to the Enyobeni Tavern in Scenery Park on the edge of East London, Eastern Cape province, early on Sunday, June 26.
Brigadier Tembinkosi Kinana, a police spokesman, told the TV station Newzroom Africa;
"We heard that 17 people died in a tavern in Scenery Park, which is in the East London area.
"As we speak, an investigation is being done into what happened.
"We don't want to guess anything at this point.
Kinana also said that the people who died were between the ages of 18 and 20. Unathi Binqose, who works for the Eastern Cape provincial community and safety department, ruled out a stampede as the cause of the deaths. He said this while he was at the scene.
Local newspaper DispatchLive said, "Bodies are scattered on tables, chairs, and the floor, and there are no obvious signs of injury."
Photos that couldn't be checked that were shared on social media showed bodies on the floor of the club with no obvious signs of injury.
Local TV showed police officers trying to calm down parents and other people who had gathered outside the club in the city, which is on the coast of the Indian Ocean and about 1,000 miles south of Johannesburg.
Siyanda Manana, a spokesman for the health department of the Eastern Cape province, told Reuters:
"We're going to start autopsies right away so we can find out the likely cause of death. We are talking 22 bodies right now.
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