7 die after S. Africa police fitness run in heat

Michael Winter, USA TODAY | USATODAY

Seven South African men seeking jobs as traffic police died as a result of a fitness-test run in 92-degree heat.

Six men in their 20s died after collapsing from heat exhaustion and dehydration Thursday afternoon during the 2.4-mile run in a stadium in the KwaZulu Natal region, The Telegraph reports. The seventh killed himself when told he hadn't finished within the allotted half hour.

The men were among more than 150,000 people -- mostly poor men in their late teens and 20s -- who sought 90 trainee positions in the Road Traffic Inspectorate in Pietermaritzburg. More than 34,000 qualified to apply and were told to report in two groups Thursday and Friday. Over the two days, an estimated 230 people collapsed and were hospitalized for heat-related problems. Many ran on an empty stomach and without water.

The opposition Inkatha Freedom Party demanded that the province's transport minister resign.

"No one in their right mind could in the first place short-list about 35 000 people for just 90 jobs," parliamentarian Blessed Gwala told the Mail & Guardian.

Willies Mchunu, minister for Transport and Community Safety and member of the African National Congress, rejected calls for him to quit.

"It is premature to call for anybody to be penalized for this incident before the investigation is concluded," he said in a statement Monday.