Johannesburg CBD fire death toll rises as two children die in Fleurhof shack blaze

The death toll in a fire that engulfed a building in Johannesburg CBD has risen to 77, the Gauteng Department of Health has confirmed.

The Usindiso building, located on the corner of Albert and Delvers streets in Marshalltown, was gutted in the early hours of Thursday, claiming the lives of residents.

Some survivors still in hospital

The provincial Health Department said one more person died in hospital on Saturday.

The department indicated that out of the 88 patients hospitalised at various health facilities, only 31 people were still receiving treatment.

“Only five [patients] still require semi-critical care, however, they are fully awake, and the admitted patients are not impacting the normal flow of our trauma patients in our facility,” the department said.

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The Gauteng Health Department is looking to conclude the post-mortem process on the 74 bodies.

There are currently 62 unidentifiable bodies at the Diepkloof Forensic Pathology Services mortuary in Soweto.

Since only 12 corpses were identifiable, DNA testing would be required to identify the deceased.

At least 40 families of the victims have showed at the mortuary so far which has resulted in a list of 66 names that possibly perished in the fire.

Inspection

On Saturday, City of Johannesburg officials inspected a hijacked building not far from the now-burnt Usindiso.

Joburg MMC for Public Safety, Mgcini Tshwaku alongside Transport MMC Kenny Kunene visited the building which has since been shut down due to its dilapidated state.

Tshwaku said the building was “a disaster waiting to happen” and pointed out that the owner was unknown.

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“The building is old… it’s actually a fire risk so we want to go inside to inspect the compliance and demonstrate that there are many buildings of this nature within the city,” he said in a video posted on social media.

In addition, Kunene said the city “will be back” to evict residents as the officials were just inspecting.

“Noe we are going to make sure we prevent the loss of life. We are removing people from buildings the emergency services has said is unsafe, inhabitable and a health hazard

According to the city, the Usindiso building will now be sealed with police patrols for additional security as it was not structurally sound.

“The building cannot be accessed at the moment as it is unsafe. No further inspections or investigations can take place until the city’s engineers have deemed the structure safe,” the municipality said on Saturday.

Shack fire

Meanwhile, multiple shacks have been gutted in a fire in Fleurhoff extension 5 informal settlement, Johannesburg.

Two children have died while an adult was injured on Sunday morning, Joburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi confirmed.

The fire, which took down 44 shacks, is believed to have been caused by a candle that was left unattended in one of the shacks in the area located between Florida and Meadowlands.

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Johannesburg has seen a number of shack fires in recent times, with incidents also reported in Diepsloot and other areas in the metro.

At least 10 shacks were gutted in a fire at an informal settlement in Denver last month.

The body of a 30-year-old man, who succumbed to smoke inhalation, was recovered.

Furthermore, four people died in two separate shack fires reported in Orange Farm and Matholesville earlier in August.