Deadly fire rages at multi-storey building in Johannesburg
At least 64 people have died in a fire that broke out inside a five-storey building in central Johannesburg on Thursday morning.
According to South Africa’s public broadcaster SABC, emergency services were swiftly mobilised, with firefighters currently engaged in efforts to extinguish the raging blaze.
More than 40 others have been injured in the fire in Marshalltown.
Videos captured at the scene showed huge flames consuming the lower level of the building.
Authorities said that a search-and-recovery operation was underway and that they were expecting the death toll to rise.
Authorities said the fire had been largely extinguished but smoke still seeped out of windows of the blackened building in downtown Johannesburg.
The building was an “informal settlement” housing homeless people while they looked for permanent accommodation.
Reports suggest as many as 200 people lived in the building.
City of Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the building’s status as a homeless shelter had made it harder to account for those killed and missing, as those living there were doing so without formal lease agreements.
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Death toll rises to 64, state broadcaster reports
The death toll in the Johannesburg building fire has risen to 64, according to the city’s emergency services.
More bodies are expected to be discovered as the search and rescue operation continues to progress, according to state broadcaster SABC.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:56
‘We saw some people throwing themselves out of the building’
Sibusiso Dladla, a woman who lives opposite the gutted building in Marshalltown told local media that she was woken up at about 2am by screams of people trying to escape fire.
She was quoted as saying by Times Live: “We heard screams and saw some people were throwing themselves out the building.
“They tried to rescue their children through the windows.
“Then they started to come downstairs and they were all crying.”
Another unidentified resident was quoted as saying: “I just heard people screaming ‘we are dying’ but I thought maybe I was dreaming.”
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:43
Bodies covered in blankets and sheets seen at the scene of fire
Bodies covered in blankets and sheets could be found in Johannesburg’s Marshalltown outside the building that caught fire and killed more than 60 people on Thursday.
Authorities say the death toll from the fire could rise and that chances of finding anyone alive inside are “very slim”.
Bodies covered in blankets and sheets are seen at the scene of a fire in Johannesburg on 31 August 2023
(AFP via Getty Images)
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:32
In Pictures: Johannesburg multi-storey building fire that killed more than 60
TOPSHOT – Firefighters work at the scene of a fire in Johannesburg on 31 August 2023
(AFP via Getty Images)
TOPSHOT – People standing at a bonfire look on as unseen firefighters work at the scene of a fire in a building in Johannesburg on 31 August 2023
(AFP via Getty Images)
A ladder of a fire engine from the fire department of the City of Johannesburg is seen at the scene of a fire in Johannesburg on 31 August 2023
(AFP via Getty Images)
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:27
Watch: Footage shows deadly fire raging at Johannesburg multi-storey building
A fire burning at a multi-storey building in Johannesburg on Thursday (31 August) has killed more than 60 people, city officials have said.
Emergency Management Services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said 63 bodies had been recovered and 43 people had been injured, with search and recovery operations continuing on Thursday morning at the block on the corner of Delvers and Alberts street in Marshalltown.
The building’s occupants were evacuated when firefighters arrived on the scene, according to officials.
It was not immediately clear what caused the fire.
Footage shows deadly fire raging at Johannesburg multi-storey building
A fire burning at a multi-storey building in Johannesburg on Thursday (31 August) has killed more than 50 people, city officials have said. Emergency Management Services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said 58 bodies had been recovered and 43 people had been injured, with search and recovery operations continuing on Thursday morning at the block on the corner of Delvers and Alberts street in Marshalltown. The building’s occupants were evacuated when firefighters arrived on scene, according to officials. It was not immediately clear what caused the fire.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:19
Chances of finding anyone alive ‘slim’
City of Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi warned people looking for their loved ones that the chances of finding anyone alive in the building are “very slim”.
He told the media on Thursday: “Over 20 years in the service, I’ve never come across something like this.”At least 63 people have died after a fire broke out in a five-story building in central Johannesburg on Thursday morning.
According to South Africa’s public broadcaster SABC, emergency services were swiftly mobilised, with firefighters currently engaged in efforts to extinguish the raging blaze.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:14
Trauma for families as they search for their relatives
The mother of a 24-year-old victim Matshidiso Zanele was distraught on Thursday morning as she searched for her daughter who lived in the building that was gutted in a fire earlier.
Treasurelee Shuping was quoted as saying by South Africa’s Times Live: “I’m looking for her, she stayed in the building for over a year now. As soon as I heard the building was on fire I knew I had to run here.
“Now I’m kept in suspense because I don’t know what’s happening, I don’t get any direction. People are being evacuated and the death toll is rising.
“I’m very anxious, I don’t know if my daughter is alive,” Ms Shuping said.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 08:02
Third fire to strike Johannesburg in as many months
This incident marks the third time a fire broke out in one of the city’s older buildings in as many months.
In June, a fire in Hillbrow claimed the lives of two young children, while earlier this month, a blaze engulfed the top floor of a building in the nearby area of Yeoville.
Alongside these fires, in July there was an underground gas explosion in Johannesburg city centre on Lilian Ngoyi Street, previously known as Bree Street.
A fire broke out in a multi-storey building in Johannesburg’s city centre early on Thursday morning, killing at least 63 and injuring dozens.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 07:59
‘We managed to evacuate people who were inside the building’, says emergency services chief
City of Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said firefighters were alerted to the fire in a building on the corner of Delvers and Alberts streets at about 1.30am local time.
“It’s a five-storey building which caught fire in the early hours of this morning. We managed to evacuate the people who were inside the building as soon as we arrived while we were conducting firefighting operations.”
At this stage, the cause of the fire is still unknown.“
Officials from City of Johannesburg disaster management have been activated to start facilitating relief for affected families,” Mr Mulaudzi said.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 07:49
Fire-hit building was homeless shelter housing more than 200
The building consumed by fire in Johannesburg on Thursday was an “informal settlement” housing homeless people while they looked for permanent accommodation.
Reports suggest as many as 200 people lived in the building that was engulfed in flames this morning, killing more than 50.
South African emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the building’s status as a homeless shelter had made it harder to account for those killed and missing, as those living there were doing so without formal lease agreements.
Maroosha Muzaffar31 August 2023 07:36