Joburg fire spreads in ducts
The blaze that engulfed the upper levels of a building in the Johannesburg CBD on Wednesday has since spread to lower levels through ducts filled with paper and boxes.
“The fire spread through the ducts to the 16th floor because there were papers and boxes in those ducts‚” Johannesburg fire chief Arthur Mqwa said.
He was speaking during a briefing at the Milpark Hospital‚ where four firefighters were undergoing treatment for burn wounds and smoke inhalation.
“The [Bank of Lisbon] building was not sealed. It did not comply with the [emergency services] bylaws‚” he said.
Three firefighters died fighting the blaze.
Overnight‚ firefighters were dispatched from other metros to help the City of Johannesburg’s exhausted teams.
Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba‚ who visited the building on Thursday to inspect the flare-up‚ was also at the hospital.
Eight firefighters were admitted‚ but four have been discharged.
“Of concern to me is the state of our city,” Mashaba said.
“In my 100 days in office‚ I raised the question of the safety of the City of Johannesburg.
“I said we’d have to take back this city. We need to act and act with pace.
“I can take you to 100 buildings [around Johannesburg] where tragedy can happen at any time.”
Most of the fires in Johannesburg were due to recklessness‚ he said. “This incident will expedite my resolve to take back the city.”
He said buildings that did not comply needed to be demolished. Mayoral committee member for public safety Michael Sun said the city was struggling with a shortage of fire engines.
“We are going to make the procurement of fire engines a priority,” he said. –