Thousands involved in Bloemfontein stampede

Around 10,000 people were involved in a stampede at a Transnet office in Bloemfontein on Friday, the transport parastatal said in a statement.

"Four of our own staff were injured in the stampede," said spokesman Mboniso Sigonyela.

"People wanted to enter our premises in response to an invitation to apply for posts at one of our depots."

Thirty vacancies were available and two halls were arranged for a 30-minute assessment.

In total, around 10,000 people responded.

"This was obviously more people than we had anticipated."

At around 8am the crowd became "unruly", said Sigonyela.

"Some started jumping over the fence, forcing security to lock the gates to try and contain the situation. The crowd continued to push the gate, resulting in the stampede," he said.

Sixty-nine people were confirmed injured, one critically, said Free State health department spokesman Jabu Mbalula.

"The situation is calm now and the area has been cleared," he said.