The low hum of a generator in the distance is the only sound one could hear driving into Pine Ridge where an orphanage burnt down during a water and power outage.
The residential area just off the Verena road was pitch dark during the outage on Sunday June 19 with not a single street- or porch light shining, the only thing illuminating the still smouldering remains of the house were the police vehicle headlights.
The garage was used as a storage space where the fire started on June 19.
An orphanage, caring for between 24 and 28 children, burnt down after a fire started in a storage room during an electricity blackout in the area. They where forced to use candles and oil lamps for light and heat. The open flames led to an accident that caused the fire.
Read the statement from the municipality and the DA here
The housemother, Ms Ayesha Soneo and other women were removing what little remained undamaged from the house by cell phone light.
Piled up clothes and supplies that remained undamaged were carried outside of the burning building after the orphanage fire in Pine Ridge.
They were also on the verge of tears thinking about the ordeal.
Ms Soneo explained that when the fire started they focused on getting the children to safety since the fire extinguisher they had on hand did little to stop the fire.
Since the water was also out in the area there was little they could do. When the fire department arrived they barely managed to stop the spreading fire before they had to leave to fetch more water which took over 45 minutes.
The owner of the house, Mr Tariq Suehzad donated it to be used as a home for orphaned children. He along with other men from the community took action to provide for the children who were moved to the local mosque where they stayed for the evening.
The orphans and housemother staying at the mosque after the incident. The community banded together to aid them after the fire burnt the orphanage in Pine Ridge.
All the children were unharmed and were given some cold drink and sweets to calm the nerves.
People on scene were visibly upset over what happened and for many community members this was the final straw.
“We look to the local government to answer for the outages. A week does not go by without a power failure,” said a frustrated resident while staring at the sight of smoke and debris in front of him.
According to the municipality the electrical supply to the area is not stable due to the bulk cable being stolen along the Old Coronation Road on a daily basis, which requires them to ring feed through the residential area. This supply is in turn interrupted by illegal connections and overloading.
“The Old Coronation feeder is attended to on a daily basis by the electrical maintenance teams. An overhead line has been constructed in order to mitigate theft of underground cables. However, this is also being vandalised now,” read a statement from the municipality.
The municipality confirmed that the orphanage has no municipal approval.
The water outages were due to mechanical problems at the purification plant which affected water supply to the reservoirs.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) proportional representative councillor allocated by the party to represent the voters of Pine Ridge, Cllr Shafie Jallal attempted to assist the residents from 18:00 on Sunday until after 01:00 on Monday morning.
They weighed in on the situation with the following statement, “The Democratic Alliance is outraged with the manner in which the residents of Pine Ridge have been treated by the municipality. We express our best wishes to those who have suffered as a result of the fire. We will continue to fight for them and all residents of eMalahleni to receive decent services.”
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