A man has told of how he helplessly listened to a baby and a woman cry as they were being consumed by fire that has claimed the lives of nine people in downtown Johannesburg.
Masonwabe Ngxono said he was woken up by his neighbour who told him that their shacks inside the dilapidated four-storey Karsene Building were burning.
Joburg emergency services yesterday said nine people, including an infant, were killed, while 11 others were injured in the tragic incident at about 4am. A total of 98 shacks went up in smoke, leaving about 200 people homeless.
Mayor Geoffrey Makhubo said initial investigations suggest that the fire may have been caused by an electrical fault.
Ngxono said when he woke up, he immediately took his seven-month- old baby and his wife and rushed outside to a safe spot.
“I rushed back [into the building] to get a few of my wife’s clothes. The rest of our stuff went up in flames,” Ngxono said.
He said while outside, he witnessed six of his neighbours jump out of the building to try and escape the flames which ravaged different floors of the building. One person died from injuries.
“The shacks are built so close to one another. This made the fire move quickly, which made it difficult for other people to escape. I had to endure the cry of a baby from the flames. A woman was also crying for help but we could not get in because the fire was spreading fast.
“I have nothing else to wear but the clothes on my body. One of my friends gave me R50 so that I could get food for my baby,” Ngxono said.
The building belongs to the City of Johannesburg and dozens of families occupied it, building shacks inside.
Residents said this was the fifth fire since they moved there in 2016. They said the other fires had not been as devastating because they happened during the day, which made it easier for people to alert others and escape.
While hundreds of shacks were built on the floors of the building, others surround the structure on the ground.
Another resident, Rocky Modigoe, said he felt the heat but did not pay much attention to what was causing it. When he was fully awake because the heat was getting stronger, he realised that the building was on fire. His shack was on the second floor of the building.
“I was able to spot the area where the fire had not yet reached and I escaped. I could not take anything. I just have the clothes that I am wearing,” Modigoe said.
By 3pm yesterday, police were still searching to see if there were no other bodies hidden under the rubble.
Johannesburg Emergency Management Services spokesperson Nana Radebe said firefighters arrived on the scene at 4am and battled the flames until 9am.
She said while they were able to locate a fire hydrant, the pressure on the connection was low.
Makhubo visited the scene accompanied by housing MMC Mlungisi Mabaso yesterday afternoon.
Makhubo said disaster management and housing departments of the city will help those affected.
“The building is very unsafe. The city will be taking steps to demolish it and relocate the people to another place. We cannot have disasters like this recurring in the City of Johannesburg. It is a very sad situation,” Makhubo said.
He said the city has already started sourcing tents, mobile toilets and mattresses to provide temporary shelter to the victims.
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