UPDATE: Sandton fire engine to be repaired soon #BryanstonFire

Fire engines took over 30 minutes to attend to a home in Bryanston which caught alight at around 9am this morning (24 July).

The occupants of the house are safe and are currently receiving medical treatment.

Pieter Dempsey, Sandton Chronicle journalist on the scene, says that the family is in shock and have been assisted by members of the public.

Updates below:

UPDATE: 11am

Following a fire that destroyed a Bryanston home on 24 July, MMC for Public Safety Michael Sun paid a visit to the Sandton Fire Station.
The unscheduled inspection was part of Sun’s regular inspections of public safety facilities. “It is encouraging to the firefighters and staff members that I go and see them,” he said.
Sun added that he was informed that the station was currently without a fire engine due to it being in for repairs. He said they would ensure that the vehicle was returned to the station as quick as possible.
He pointed out that it was not unusual for fire engines to break down and they have to be sent in for regular maintenance and repairs.
“The procedure is that if any particular fire station is out of service, they will be supported by the next available fire station, which is the normal deployment process.”
He said the station was capacitated with a Skid unit (smaller fire response vehicle) and an air truck for emergency situations.
In case of an emergency, the community should contact the call centre on 011 375 5911/10177.

Just arrived for an unscheduled inspection at the Sandton Fire Station & was received by Platoon Commander Abey Seema.

I am informed the fire engine has gone for repairs of the exhaust system, we will make sure it is fixed and returned without delay. pic.twitter.com/Ffi0yvbjYW

— Cllr. Michael Sun (@MichaelSun168) July 24, 2018

UPDATE: 3.15pm

Nana Radebe, spokesperson for the City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services said after an investigation the cause of the fire could not be determined due to the extent of damage caused by the flames.
“The fire started in the kitchen and spread to the rest of the house,” said Radebe.

Regarding the fire engine from Florida that attended to the scene, Radebe said that the Sandton fire engine broke down over the weekend and is in for repairs. “Its engine is mixing water and oil.”

She was unable to provide a date when the engine will be repaired.
“The Florida engine was the closest and responded to the call and the Alexandra fire engine was attending to another incident at the time. Luckily there were no serious injuries.”

UPDATE: 10.44am

It has come to light that there were occupants inside the house when the fire began. Two young boys and a domestic worker have received treatment from paramedics but do not appear to be seriously harmed aside from a couple bandaged spots on their bodies.

An image of the ruined house with smoke is rising from the roof.

The Florida fire engine that attended to the fire.

This is a developing story and is updated as soon as information is verified. 

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