Cockroaches crawling on the beds.
Image: Supplied
SERIOUS concerns have been raised about hygiene conditions at King Dinuzulu Hospital, formerly known as King George V Hospital, after a patient alleged that wards at the state facility were infested with cockroaches.
Imraan Bennette, 52, from Morningside, described his experience at the hospital as “traumatizing”, after he was admitted after suffering two heart attacks.
He alleged the cockroach infestation forced him to stay awake at night as they crawled on him.
Bennette said he was first admitted to the hospital on May 16 after suffering a heart attack. According to him, his initial experience at the hospital’s triage section was deeply concerning.
“When we got to triage, I explained that I was having a heart attack, but the nurses checked my blood pressure and told me nothing was wrong. They said I was perfectly fine and that I should wait in line,” he said.
Cockroaches dead on the floor of the ward.
Image: Supplied
Bennette said he later sought assistance at a nearby clinic where an ECG confirmed he was indeed having a heart attack.
He was then transported by ambulance back to King Dinuzulu Hospital before being transferred to Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital where a stent was inserted into his right artery.
After being discharged on May 21, Bennette said he suffered a second heart attack two days later and returned to King Dinuzulu Hospital.
He claimed he remained in the emergency section due to a shortage of beds and waited several days without seeing a cardiologist.
However, it was the conditions of one of the medical wards that left him horrified.
“On May 24, I was moved to Medical One ward and that is when I saw the cockroach infestation. The wash basins had cockroaches running across them, they were all over the soap dispensers, mattresses, cabinets and floors,” Bennette alleged.
“I reported it to the nurses and they told me management was fully aware of the infestation and there was nothing they could do about it.”
Cockroaches in the cabinets.
Image: Supplied
According to Bennette, the infestation was so severe that he could not sleep.
“I spent the whole night killing cockroaches. They were crawling on me while I was trying to sleep. At one stage, I must have killed between 15 and 20 cockroaches during the night,” he said.
“I was traumatized. You expect a hospital to be hygienic, especially when you are there because of a medical emergency. Instead, I was dealing with cockroaches crawling over me.”
Bennette said he does not blame the hospital’s cleaning staff, whom he described as hardworking under difficult conditions, but believes management has failed to address the issue adequately.
“The cleaning staff are doing their best, but the cleaning supplies and pest control methods are clearly not effective,” he said.
“To me, the pest controller being used is making a big buck out of using the weakest and most ineffective cockroach treatment. That contract should be revoked with immediate effect.”
Bennette, who works as the fleet maintenance manager for Olympic Bus Lines, said he understands the importance of maintaining clean and hygienic environments.
“There are chemicals available that can keep pests away for long periods, but whatever is being used here is clearly not working,” he added.
He also recounted hearing another disturbing account from a woman at the hospital who allegedly gave birth there during a power outage in November 2025.
“She told me the hospital was plunged into darkness for more than an hour and cockroaches came out from everywhere — all over the beds and even near the babies. She had to stand holding her baby while using her phone torch and stomping on cockroaches coming towards them,” Bennette claimed.
Imraan Bennette.
Image: Supplied
He said the conditions have left him shocked and determined to seek accountability from hospital authorities.
“This is the nearest hospital to me and I have been going there for years. But now that it is infested with cockroaches, it is absolutely shocking,” he said.
“I will be taking this matter up with hospital management and beyond because people cannot be suffering in these unhygienic conditions in a hospital where cleanliness and patient safety should come first.”
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health did not respond at the time of publication.