Fight fire with fire

THERE is so little said about the brave and selfless work performed by fire professionals, that Joburg has been especially touched by the deaths of two of them in the inner city after a massive blaze on Saturday night.

Yet the story should have been so different. Instead of revealing the details of what must have been agonising final experiences for the two men, we should rather have been telling the tale of their courage. And indeed, courage is at the centre of the tragedy that unfolded in a seven-storey building off Albertina Sisulu Road.

However, it appears that the deaths might have been averted had the two firefighters had sufficient equipment and support on the ground. It’s important to note that the city has issued denials, saying reports suggesting the teams on the scene were underequipped and understaffed are incorrect. Yet, we find it difficult to believe that every report covering the incident is wrong, and that these two professionals might have died anyway, even had they had the requisite back-up.

The South African Municipal Workers Union, in particular, has said that shortages on the part of the city’s Emergency Management Services (EMS) could have played a fatal role.

Firefighters have warned about poor working conditions before, citing basic needs such as oxygen masks not being provided to the extent of need, as examples. And we hear a familiar ring to the cry for more fire engines, with a report on Saturday night’s incident saying that one of the vehicles sent to the scene broke down before it got there.

It’s disturbing, to say the least, that the EMS even has a cloud over it, in terms of fighting fires. Joburg has a frightening record particularly of shack fires, with dozens believed to occur every year. Thousands are disfigured by their injuries, mostly a result of the poor socio-economic conditions that led to the fires in the first place.

Perhaps these two deaths will not be in vain, since the city is now very much on the spot in terms of its firefighting abilities. We certainly hope the two men will be properly honoured by immediate improvements for their esteemed colleagues.