Essex hospital doctor shot dead on holiday after ‘taking wrong turn’

A much-loved NHS doctor has been killed on holiday in South Africa after he took a wrong turn amid the violent taxi driver strikes in the country. Kar Hao Teoh, 40, was shot dead while on holiday with wife Sara and son Hugo, 2, after they took a wrong turn after driving into Cape Town’s Nyanga township close to the city’s international airport last Thursday (August 3) the Mirror reports.^[1]

A group then walked up to the vehicle before a gun was fired. Mr Teoh worked at NHS Princess Alexandra Hospital in Harlow and lived in Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire, near the Essex border with his family. He received multiple awards for his work as an orthopedic and trauma consultant.

There has been an outpouring of grief and love for Kar on social media as many have been shocked by the news. “The unexpected passing of my close friend has left me deeply shaken”, wrote surgeon Bedri Karaismailoglu.

While Kartik Hariharan said: “Devasting news. Unable to digest the terrible reality that I won’t see Kar again.” Danny Wong wrote: “Kar Hao’s last few messages to me were pictures of his safari trip, a picture of some crocodiles and elephants in the marsh.

“And also some pictures of the outdoor cooker he bought so his in-laws could have a wet kitchen to cook in. We talked about how he could install an awning outside in his garden so the cooker could be used outdoors in the shade.

Tributes have poured in for the well liked doctor (Image: The Mirror)

“Everyone knew who Kar Hao was in school. You could never miss him in a crowd. This tall lanky Chinese guy with a distinctive mark on his left cheek, always with a ready smile.

“All his teachers loved him. His friends in school all liked him. This is all so unfair, Sara has lost a wonderful husband and Hugo has lost a loving father.”

Ministry spokesperson, Lirandzu Themba, confirmed the news yesterday, saying: “The doctor was driving with two other persons in the vehicle. From the airport, he apparently took a wrong turn off and headed towards Nyanga. A number of suspects approached his vehicle, shot and killed him. No arrests yet.”