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Middelburg Hospital workers down tools after reports of stabbing, shooting, overnight

The door of the emergency room was also allegedly broken down by the assault victim's family.

Patients seeking help from Middelburg Hospital are being turned away after violence erupted at the state institution during the night.

According to a source at the hospital, the family of an assault victim taken to the hospital for treatment, caused the drama.

One patient, whose son is in need of stiches to his hand, told www.mobserver.co.za that they were both escorted from the hospital premises and told to go to eMalahleni or seek private medical assistance.

The man says staff have gone on strike over what he was told, was a stabbing and shooting incident.

The hospital source, however, says no shots were fired, but that nursing staff and security guards had been assaulted.

The door of the emergency room was also allegedly broken down by the assault victim’s family.

The source says that no one was seriously injured though some nurses and security guards had been injured.

According to the patient who was escorted off the premises with his son, he was told that a nurse had been stabbed in the leg, and that shots had been fired targeting a doctor.

Hospital management could not be reached for comment. Access to the hospital remains restricted.

The Mpumalanga Department of Health is unaware of the allegations and said it would respond once it has confirmed details with management.

A doctor has been killed in the hospital before, also resulting in a similar strike years ago.

Nurses were also stabbed at the establishment a few years ago.

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Gerhard Rheeder

I have been a journalist for two decades, with numerous awards to my credit, both in photography and writing. A brief stint as researcher in the opposition offices of the Mpumalanga Provincial Legislature, honed my skills as specialist local government reporter, covering crime and courts.
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