Same shops catch fire again on New Year’s Day

SEVERAL shops on Central Avenue which were gutted by a fire in November, again caught fire on New Year’s Day.

According to emergency services spokesman William Ntladi, fire fighters from Kempton Park, backed up by fire fighters from Leon Ferreira, Farramere and Edenvale fire stations respectively, managed to extinguish the well-alight fire in the city centre.

“Firefighters responded promptly after receiving the call around 3.20pm on New Year’s Day,” he said.

“On arrival, it was found that the shops on fire – were the same ones that burnt previously a couple of weeks ago. All four shops weren’t yet operational, since the previous incident.

“As per information at the scene, people vandalising the structures caused the re-ignition. Forcible entry tools were used to access the building, with the intention of extinguishing the blaze. The actual cause of the fire is unknown and still under investigation,” Ntladi added.

There were no injuries.