Woman nabbed for fire
ARSON: HIJACKED BUILDING IN JOBURG CBD ENGULFED BY FATAL BLAZE Suspect arrested for starting flames as city awaits police investigations.
Asuspect has been arrested for arson in connection with the fire that broke out at a hijacked building in the Johannesburg city centre on Friday.
Speaking to reporters at the scene, Joburg city manager Floyd Brink said an unidentified woman was apprehended and was now in the possession of the South African Police Service (Saps).
“It does seem at this point that the fire was started by a specific person… it’s a female,” he said.
“We have handed over to Saps [and] are now waiting for the investigations to unfold,” he said yesterday, Brink said the municipality’s forensic team was deployed to inspect the building.
“It’s now up to Saps to indicate to us exactly from that side in terms of the fire. But what we can indicate is that it took about 10 minutes or so for our teams to be on-site for them to start extinguishing the fire,” said Brink.
He added that the Commissioner Street blaze was picked up by the city’s camera systems.
“We [did not] receive any calls from anyone. So through our systems, we managed to detect [the fire] and that’s how we deployed our teams with fire engines.”
Brink also confirmed that the building was hijacked.
“Bad buildings have been a problem for the City of Johannesburg as they are well-known.”
But he stressed that the city was working to address the issue of hijacked buildings by creating long-term and sustainable plans for residents.
The fire resulted in the deaths of two people, while four people were transported to hospital for further medical care.
Johannesburg Emergency Services (EMS) said some residents sustained minor injuries while escaping the burning building.
“Two people jumped from the second floor and three were rescued from the balcony,” said Joburg EMS spokesperson Xolile Khumalo.
“Two people were found dead as search and rescue operations continued at the building fire. Four people have been transported to healthcare facilities for further medical care.
“The fire operation continues at the two-storey building that was engulfed in flames earlier this morning. It spread very quickly, affecting different levels of the building because of the combustible materials used.”
Bad buildings have been a problem for the City of Joburg as they are well-known.
Floyd Brink Joburg city manager