Johannesburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi has confirmed that 73 people lost their lives when the fire broke out in a five-storey building in central Johannesburg on Thursday morning.
Among the dead is a baby, said Mulaudzi, adding that more than 50 other people were injured when the building on the corner of Alberts and Delvers streets, believed be one of the hijacked buildings across the city, caught fire.
Mulaudzi said the cause of the blaze is being investigated.
Johannesburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda visited the scene in the morning while Gauteng MEC for health Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko is expected to visit those who were admitted to Helen Joseph Hospital.
Mulaudzi said the building resembled an informal settlement inside. He said there were 80 shacks inside the building.
“On arrival, firefighters started to evacuate all the people out of the building while conducting firefighting operations. At this stage, the cause of the fire incident is still a subject of investigations,” said Mulaudzi.
City of Johannesburg disaster management officials have been activated to start facilitating relief for affected families.
It is alleged that the fire started on the ground floor before spreading to other floors. When
Sunday World visited the scene, the survivors who lost their loved ones were hopelessly sitting on the pavement as they waited for government officials to help them find alternative accommodation.
One of the survivors said she had to jump from her window in a bid to escape the raging fire.
“It was so dark in the house and passage, so I had to jump out of the window. It was either I jump or I die in the fire,” she said. “Luckily, I stay on the first floor and I wasn’t badly injured.”
She said she lost all her belongings inside the flat.
“The only thing I have are the clothes that I am wearing. I left my cellphone inside and I don’t know how I will contact my family back home in the Eastern Cape.” She added that she still does not know whether her neighbours are dead or alive.
MEC of human settlements Lebogang Maile said the most important thing is to convey condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones.
“As some people were trying to escape, they ended up dying in other people’s houses. I have never witnessed such a tragic thing in my life. Seeing a person burnt beyond recognition like that was difficult to take in,” said Maile.
“This incident demonstrates a chronic problem of housing in our province. At least 1.2-million people need housing in Gauteng.
“The city knows of over 20 buildings that need to be developed and house people. As the provincial government, we will be working with the City of Joburg to help the victims. We have identified the buildings that the surviving victims will be allocated to.”
Maile said issues around nationality will not be entertained at the moment, stressing that everyone who was affected will be assisted. Earlier in the day, Mulaudzi confirmed that a tremor hit parts of the city on Wednesday evening.
“This was mostly reported in Roodepoort, Soweto, and surrounding areas. Even though there are no major incidents, we remain on high alert to make sure that we are able to respond to any area which might have been affected by the tremor,” said Mulaudzi.
This is a developing story.
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