According to the Carletonville police, a personnel member living in the hospital’s single quarters noticed smoke billowing from the neighbouring building at around 06:30 on Thursday, 4 February. The personnel know the structure as the old crèche building, but it stored personal protective equipment (PPE) and other health equipment at the time of the fire. While the eyewitness reported the incident, the building burnt so fast that the fire could not be stopped before massive damage was done and the equipment had been destroyed. Although preliminary investigations pointed to an electrical fault causing the fire, it soon turned out not to be the case. On Friday, the West Rand District Municipality emergency services sent two sniffer dogs to the scene. They revealed traces of fire accelerants at two separate places in the building. On Saturday, another sniffer dog from Potchefstroom identified traces of accelerants at exactly the same spots. Members of the police’s forensic unit from Pretoria also visited the scene on Friday and Saturday. The police have officially opened a docket for a case of arson, which is being investigated by the Carletonville Detective Services. The mystery surrounding the fire took another turn when members of the Specialised Investigative Unit, commonly known as the Hawks, also arrived at the scene the day after the fire, to look into the circumstances that led to the loss of the PPE. The spokesperson for the MEC for Health, Kwara Kekana, says the Gauteng Department of Infrastructure and Development (DID) had asked the hospital to assist with the temporary storage of health equipment and linen. The goods were meant for the old AngloGold Ashanti West Wits Hospital that is being renovated for a Covid-19 hospital. “A team of engineers from DID visited the site to assess the electrical appliances and the department awaits their official report. The hospital has replenished PPE stock from the provincial warehouses and an alternative storage area has been identified within the hospital to keep the stock,” Kekana said. She added that no one was injured in the fire and that it did not affect the services the Carletonville Hospital renders. Although various sources said the PPE was valued at approximately R20 million, Carletonville hospital’s communication officer, Mr Matabo Letsoalo, said on Tuesday that it was still not clear what the total damage was. “We do not have figures yet. The provincial office is currently calculating costs and consolidating a report,” he says. Anyone who thinks they might have information that could assist the police in their investigation into the cause of the fire should contact the Carletonville detective services at 018 787 9345. 
