The devastating explosion in the Joburg central business district has resulted in the death of one person. Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi on Wednesday evening said that 47 people were injured and transported to hospitals for further treatment.
Emergency services said that at this stage the cause of the blast is still unclear, and authorities are still probing the cause of the blast.
City of Joburg (COJ) said the explosion was caused by a gas pipeline following reports of a strong gas smell. But on Wednesday evening Egoli Gas released a statement refuting these claims.
It said this was unlikely as pressure in the pipelines in the area had not dropped.
City Power also reported that three of its substations were affected during the blast.
“Bree, Braamfontein and Johnware substations are currently off until the Joint Command Team comprising the CoJ Emergency Services, Disaster Management and other CoJ and Provincial units have given the go ahead.”
One of its employee’s was also injured.
“One City Power employee was injured during the explosion on her way to work, and she is one of those currently hospitalized. Our teams will not be responding to outage calls in the CBD until the area has been declared safe to access and work,” read the statement.
The Joburg metro police department (JMPD) confirmed that several roads had been closed. These include Lilian Ngoyi (Bree) Street, Pixely Ka Seme (Sauer) and Von Weilligh Street, as well as all the streets crossing Lilian Ngoyi Street between Rahima Moosa and Plein Street, including Simmonds Street, Harrison Street, Loveday Street, Rissik Street, Joubert Street, Eloff Street and Von Brandis Street.
“Law enforcement officials from JMPD and police have been deployed to cordon off the scene to ensure the safety of all and to divert traffic on the affected routes,” said spokesperson Xolani Fihla.
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