Johannesburg – The death toll has risen to 73, and 52 people have been confirmed injured amid a fire in a residential building called Usindiso Homeless Shelter in the Johannesburg CBD.
The fire broke out in the early hours of today
Human Settlements and Infrastructure Development MEC Lebogang Maile conveyed condolences to the loved ones of those who lost their lives and wished a speedy recovery to those injured in the blaze.
He said the building belonged to the City of Joburg; it was leased to an NGO a few years ago, they abandoned it, and it was hijacked.
He said a media conference detailing all the facts would take place tomorrow. For now, they were focusing on the tragedy and making sure they attended to the survivors and the displaced and arranged accommodation for them.
“We have identified three buildings where displaced people will be relocated. There are about 141 households and more than 300 people who have survived who will need accommodation,” Maile said.
Asked who should take responsibility for the deaths, Maile said he did not want to pre-empt the investigations that would be conducted into the cause of the fire, the status of the building, and who should have done what.
Maile said heads would roll if there was any wrongdoing by officials or the City.
Dr Mgcini Tshwaku, mayoral committee member (MMC) for public safety, has slammed NGOs such as the Socio-economic Rights Institute (Seri) and others for their endless litigation against the City of Joburg government whenever they wanted to implement city laws and seize hijacked buildings.
Tshwaku said every time the city wanted to take over buildings, civil society organisations took them to court without considering the implications of their actions.
“Seri and other organisations must come to the party. The city has a plan to rescue these buildings, but whenever we act on it, we are taken to court and litigated. We are saying Seri must come to the party and help us take these buildings back,” the MMC said.
It is still not known what caused the fire, but Emergency Services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the city had dispatched the relevant agencies to help those affected, including families of those who had lost their loved ones.
City of Joburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda said the city was making strides in dealing with the illegal occupation of buildings. He said there were several organisations that had a keen interest in the approach taken when evicting people.
“This current administration is taking a more prudent approach; we are not going there with group force; we are trying to apply a maximum-sensitive strategy,” he said.
The Star