When the 'dead' man's family came to collect the body at the morgue they noticed he was breathing.
A 28-year-old South African man who was declared dead in a car accident was found to be alive a day later in the mortuary refrigerator in Phoenix, South Africa, a media reported said. Msizi Mkhize, from KwaMashu near Durban, was declared dead at the crash scene and taken to the mortuary. However, when his family went to collect the body, they noticed that he was still breathing. Shocked at seeing that Mkhize was still alive, mortuary staff rushed him to the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital, the Daily News reported. However, he died five hours later at the hospital.
Mkhize's family now wants answers as to how the blunder had occurred and whether his life could have been saved if he was taken to hospital earlier.
Mkhize was hit by a car while walking home with a friend on December 5, according to his sister Hlobisile.
He was allegedly declared dead at the scene by paramedics.
The incident took a dramatic turn the next day when the family went to the mortuary to view the body, The morgue's employee found the 28-year-old still alive in the refrigerator. His family believe the paramedics were negligent.
The man was rushed to Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital but died there five hours later.
"We want to know who declared him dead. Is that person experienced enough to handle and make decisions in such situations?" Hlobisile was quoted as saying by the South African daily.
"This is painful and stressful for the family to establish that our brother and son had spent the night in the morgue Somewhere, somehow someone did not do their job. We want a full explanation from all concerned," she said.
Her father, Peter Mkhize, said the family was traumatised. "I have no words to express how I feel about what happened to my child. To spend the entire night and morning in the mortuary refrigerator is wrong," Peter said.
"We arrived there at 8 am to do the paperwork and view the body of my child. It was after 12 pm when an employee told one of the doctors my son was alive," he said.
Provincial police spokeswoman, Colonel Thandeka Mbhele confirmed the incident.
Dr Rishigen Viranna, a general practitioner, has called for a full investigation into the "horror incident at Durban's Phoenix mortuary".
He said the incident had highlighted the "extreme shortcomings" within the provincial Health Department's EMRS and mortuary services.
Health Department head, Dr Sifiso Mtshali, was quoted as saying, "The department cannot comment at this stage, as it is still gathering the facts regarding this matter."