A workshop, two manufacturing premises and a few vehicles were damaged during the blaze that spread to Boksburg Mini Park in All Black Road, Anderbolt, last week Friday.
William Ntladi, spokesperson for Ekurhuleni Emergency and Disaster Services, said they responded to the blaze after receiving calls about black smoke somewhere in Anderbolt.
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“We found a block of factories on fire and one of them, right at the back, was well alight with rubble and plastic burning,” said Ntladi.
“It took the emergency services approximately two hours to extinguish the fire completely and the risk was quite high, considering the flammable materiel used by factories in near proximity.
“We had to evacuate everybody and prevented possible explosions from gas cylinders. Our priority was to ensure everybody’s safety and keep the fire from spreading. The strength of the wind, which also changed direction, challenged us.
“No injuries were reported, but two firefighters required medical attention as one had a blister on his left hand and the other firefighter suffered heat exhaustion. The paramedics on scene attended to them.
“All the necessary emergency services were on the scene of the blaze.”
He said business owners believe the fire was started by a scrapyard dealer, but Ntladi could not confirm it.
“The cause of the fire is still undetermined as the investigation is still ongoing,” he said.
According to Kyle Nair, operational manager at Tech 1 Auto that was mostly affected by the blaze, everything in the workshop was destroyed.
“We have moved to another premises at the Mini Park. One truck melted and another one was completely burnt. There’s also water damage at our building.
“We are not entirely open for business, but we will assist where we can. At this stage I’m not able to tell how long it will take to restore everything,” said Kyle.
Carol-Ann Jamison from Cylex Trading, another manufacturer that was affected by the blaze, said they were quite fortunate as there was only damage to the outside of their building and they didn’t sustain any major damage.
“It was a shock, but I’m happy nobody was injured,” said Carol-Ann.
“I hope people learnt that fire is not something to take lightly and they are not allowed to make a fire in an enclosed area without correct fire control.”
According to Ntladi, people called the old fire station’s number, which is no longer operational.
Ntladi said people who parked their vehicles in front of the fire hydrants also caused a delay.
“A hydrant outside had to be used.”
