Oudtshoorn soldier found dead at military base

A soldier was found dead at a military base in Oudtshoorn on Thursday, the SA National Defence Force said. 

“He was found dead this morning, but we don’t know when he died,” Brigadier General Xolani Mabanga said.  

The police were called and were busy investigating the cause of death.

Mabanga said he could not comment further at this stage.  

The SA National Defence Union (Sandu) said in a statement that it was shocked at the death, which it said raised serious questions.  “According to our investigations, the soldier was a recruit under training and was assigned to do guard duty at the outside field base during [Wednesday] night,” national secretary Pikkie Greeff said.  

According to Sandu, no one saw the soldier after 8pm on Wednesday until his body was discovered at his guard post around 7am on Thursday.  

“The cause of death, by all indications, is hypothermia,” Greef claimed.  

Sandu said the death raised questions, including whether the soldier was properly dressed for cold weather, and whether he had a two-way radio for communication.  

“The entire tragedy could have been avoided had any of the standard working procedure around guards been observed,” Greef claimed.