A GREENWOOD Park family is now trying to rebuild their lives after a fire blazed through their home last week Monday.
The fire which started just after midday is suspected to have been caused by a smoker who threw a burning match on dry grass.
“I was at work when my neighbours called me to say my house was on fire. I dropped everything and rushed home, confused and trying to figure out how was my house on fire in broad daylight,” said the homeowner Sanjay Baijnath.
Bainath lives with his wife, children and grandchildren who were all not at the house when the fire started. The Greenwood Park home is situated next to an open veld and is surrounded by a dry hedge.
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“Someone started the fire and failed to contain it. Due to the direction in which the wind was blowing, the fire reached my house. It caught on to the hedge on the fence and the roof, from there the flame just spread,” said a distraught Bainath.
His wife Sindy, said they are just grateful no one got injured.
“Fortunately the fire didn’t get to our back room which is where we’re currently living,” she said with tears drowning her eyes.
The Bainath family said they’re still trying to contact the owner of the property. The man who is believed to have started the fire is known to the family.
“One of our neighbours said he saw the man and asked him why he’d start a fire on such a windy day. At this point we’re just trying to piece our livelihood together using the remains.”
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Earlier this year eThekwini Municipality’s Fire department warned the public of starting fires they can’t contain. At the time the station Commander Matlotlo Babore-Mathe said one of their biggest challenges faced was landowners starting fires they later fail to contain.
“People will burn their refuse and when we warn them about the dangers of that they say we can’t tell them what to do in their properties. This is very dangerous as the fires they start could spread and lead to disasters. There’s also a lot of health risks involved. We urge community members to avoid starting fires,” she said.
In Monday’s incident it took less than a half an hour for the veld fire to reach the Baijnath’s home. When Bainath arrived neigbours and other community members were already trying to distinguish the fire.
“We would just like to thank the community for helping us through this hard time. Our neihbours tried putting out the fire but the damage was already done. We would also like to thank our family for their support,” said Bainath.
A case of arson has been opened and is being investigated by Greenwood Park police.
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