It is with great sorrow that I share the heartbreaking news that we have lost a Radiography student, Ms Carla Steytler (24), who passed away unexpectedly after collapsing at the Bloemfontein Campus on 22 February 2022. Carla was a second-year student full of hope for the future. Born and raised in De Aar, she was an active member of the university community, a dedicated class representative in the Faculty of Health and Environmental Sciences, and actively involved in the affairs of the Department of Radiography. She represented a typical example of what we aim to achieve with our students.

This is devastating news for Carla’s family, friends, and her cohort of classmates and lecturers, to whom she was close, and for the CUT community as a whole, and the university community is indeed heartbroken and in a state of shock over this loss.

Carla’s family was notified of her precarious state of health, and immediately drove from De Aar to Bloemfontein upon receiving the call from the university. The university has been in close contact with her family, to offer our support during this difficult time.

We wish to express our deepest condolences to Carla’s family, lecturers, classmates and friends. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this time.

Details of memorial and funeral services to honour her will be communicated in due course.

May her soul rest in peace.

The university provides trauma counselling to staff and students who need immediate support. Contact details for staff who require trauma counselling are as follows:

1. Toll-free number from Telkom landline: 0800 004 770
2. E-mail address: ewp@lifehealthcare.co.za 
3. SMS your name to 31581
4. WhatsApp: 066 488 2273

Students who are in need of immediate support are encouraged to contact Ms Magauta Kenke for counselling and additional support sessions. Her contact details are as follows:

1. Tel.: 051 507 3154
2. E-mail address: wellness@cut.ac.za 
3. WhatsApp: 060 639 0202

Kind regards / Ditumediso tse mofuthu / Vriendelike groete
Prof. Alfred Ngowi
Acting Vice-Chancellor and Principal

Download the aVC Communiqué, 28 February 2022 (PDF)

Uploaded: 28 February 2022