The University of Johannesburg (UJ) described Tuesday morning's stampede at one of their campuses as a “very sad situation”.
University Vice Chanellor Professor Ihron Rensburg made the statement at an emergency media briefing at the Auckland Park campus on Tuesday.
“When we opened the gates this morning… there was simply an unbearable crush on the front entrance. The outcome… was that we had one parent, who was in the queue, crushed and she passed away. There are also two other persons who are critically injured.”
Rensburg said the 46-year-old woman who died at the campus was the mother of one of the students who had already reached the registration tent inside the campus. At the time, he didn’t know there was a stampede and that his mother, who had been waiting in the queue, had died.
Roelof Hugo, UJ’s head of security, said that at 7.30 on Tuesday, a massive crowd of more than 6 000 parents and prospective students had gathered outside the gates.
“We noticed the crowds. We deployed security personnel to try to organise (the crowds). As soon as we opened the gate, the people at the back (of the queue) pushed the people at the front.”
He said that action had crushed the people at the front of the queue against the gate and that’s when they took the decision to open the big gates.
Said Hugo, “Once we were able to get control back, with metro police and the South African Police Service, we let on an additional 6 000 people onto the campus.”
Rensburg said in light of Tuesday's tragedy, the university would enter into consultation with metro police and other stakeholders to consider closing late applications. This was not confirmed, but would be discussed, he said.
The purpose of late applications was to “provide a window of opportunity” to students who had done well after their final matric exams.
He said on Monday the facility had received about 5 000 applications and those prospective students would receive word on the success of their application within 48 hours. The university was also expecting to receive a total of 11 000 applications by the end of the day (Tuesday).
“At the end of 2011, 85 000 applications had been received for between 11 000 and 12 000 first-year places. These placements were up from last year… (and) this was to curb the demand for placement,” he said.
Rensburg added that the university had spent the past year preparing to assist students in a way that would empower them.
He said the university would now launch a full investigation into Tuesday's stampede and the process would include sifting through CCTV footage of the campus before, during and post the stampede.
Rensburg also made a call to the public and the media to share any footage they may have had of the campus, regarding Tuesday's stampede. - IOL