A large number of Johannesburg residents experienced a disastrous Easter weekend filled with grief after they had to relocate as their possessions were destroyed by a fire that spread throughout their shacks.
Shack fire
The City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) said on Sunday that a fire started in the shacks on Commissioner Street in Fairview.
The impacted shacks were around sixty (60); however, fortunately, the occupants were able to flee to safety, and no casualties were reported, according to Johannesburg EMS spokesman Nana Radebe-Kgiba.
“Fire safety conducted preliminary investigations to determine the cause of the fire, and disaster management is on board to assist the affected families,” said Radebe-Kgiba.
Johannesburg has been experiencing a number of fires since August 2023, when 77 people lost their lives after a building in Marshalltown was gutted down by fire.
Lawlessness
The affected building was described as having a lot of crime, and there were gangs that were selling drugs inside the building.
Residents, of whom most were foreign nationals, built shacks within the building and occupied it.
The case is currently before the court, as one man accused of starting the fire, Thembiso Lawrence Mdlalose was apprehended.
He is facing one count of arson: 76 counts of murder, and 86 counts of attempted murder.
Meanwhile, in September 2023, the SARS building that is located in the CBD also caught fire.
As a result, SARS announced that the building would be closed and that they would render their services virtually.
Scores left homeless
On the other hand, two people died and almost 2,000 were left homeless when fires engulfed hundreds of shacks in three separate incidents in Cape Town during the weekend.
Two of the fires occurred on Saturday evening and one in the early hours of Sunday morning, according to emergency services.
“An adult male and female sustained fatal burn wounds and were declared deceased by medics,” said Cape Town’s fire and rescue spokesperson, Jermaine Carelse.
The biggest fire, which happened around 02:30 on Sunday, engulfed over 150 shacks, leaving over 1,000 people displaced in the Mfuleni settlement.
