Residents blame tardy DEMS for devastating loss

Khosi Mahlangu needs help to rebuild her life.

2 hours ago

Siphokuhle Mpanza 2 minutes read

Only the walls of Khosi Mahlangu’s house are left.

A fire ravaged Khosi Mahlangu’s home in Emaphupheni, Etwatwa, on July 7, leaving nothing but ruins in its wake.

While she claims the firefighters took two hours to arrive to start tackling the fire, the spokesperson for Ekurhuleni DEMS said their crews reacted immediately but were pelted with stones by angry residents when they arrived and had to retreat for their safety.

Khosi Mahlangu at her home after the fire.

Mahlangu, a self-employed carpenter, said the fire broke out at about 15:00 and destroyed her home and stock worth R80 000.

She lamented the fire department’s delayed response and said the losses might not have been this bad if they had responded sooner.

“I kept calling them, pleading with them to hurry. However, it took them two hours to arrive at my house,” she said

?While waiting for the firefighters, community members were hard at work trying to extinguish the fire with buckets of water. It was, however, not enough to save my house and belongings.”

Khosi Mahlangu caught someone red-handed stealing metals from the ruins.

Mahlangu was at her friend’s house when she got news of the fire. She doesn’t know how it started because she switched off all the appliances when she left home.

Neighbour Eddy Khanyi said when the firefighters arrived, community members pelted stones at them for arriving late.

“We are angry with the fire department for failing to arrive on time. My friends identity documents and another valuable assets wouldn’t have perished if they did their job.”

Broken windows

DEMS spokesperson William Ntladi refuted claims that the firefighters responded late.

“A call was captured exactly at 15:54, and firefighters were dispatched immediately to the scene. They arrived at 15:58. On arrival, the community attacked the crew with stones and other objects.

“The team had to drive away for their safety after the fire engines windows were damaged. A crew member needed hospitalisation as a result. In accordance with Road Traffic Management Act, the vehicle (fire engine) is currently out of commission because of broken windows,” Ntladi said.

“Had the firefighters been allowed to do their job, the damage could have been minimised. Later on, another fire engine was dispatched to the same scene. On arrival, the community were calm and allowed the firefighters to continue their duties.”