Another fire leaves Mangolongolo resident destitute
Hundred of residents slept out in the open after a fire destroyed their shacks.
Residents of Mangolongolo Informal Settlement slept outside on Wednesday, following a fire that destroyed 130 shacks including a local spaza shop.
Ms Maria Mthimkhulu, a member of the residents’ committee, said the fire was started by a paraffin stove.
“A resident left a paraffin stove on after cooking and went to do some washing at a central tap. Apparently the stove burst into flames which started the fire in the informal settlement,” said Ms Mthimkhulu.
She said the residents lost everything.
“Some lost important documents such as their Identity Documents and other belongings. Women and children slept in the local hall on Wednesday. Men slept outside, guarding the little bit of what remained when their belongings were destroyed in the fire. We will need help,” she said the morning after the fire.
On Thursday, men were cleaning up and trying to rebuild the shacks. Most women were checking the rubble to see if there was anything that was still usable. Children were playing as if nothing had happened.
In July this year, 60 shakes were burnt to the ground leaving more than 115 people destitute.
At that time, the DA’s Gauteng Shadow Health MEC, MPL Jack Bloom, said the area was vulnerable
“It is too crowded, which is why fires spread so rapidly and disastrously. More needs to be done to prevent more fires. Council needs to sit down with residents and re-order the settlement so that there are fire-breaks and larger spaces between the shacks. Piped water needs to be made more available and dangerous paraffin stoves must be replaced with safe methanol stoves. Solar lights should replace candles,” said MPL Bloom.
Johannesburg Emergency Services spokesperson, Mr Robert Mulaudzi, urged the residents not to leave candles and paraffin stoves unattended.
“This has proved to be the most common cause of fires in the informal settlements. Building shacks using wood and not leaving enough space between the shacks makes the fire spread rapidly throughout the settlement,” he said.
He said the CoJ hosts fire safety campaigns in different informal settlements.
He said the results of these campaigns are yet to show.
