Johannesburg Emergency Management Services Concerned About Winter Fire Incidents
- The Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) is concerned over the number of dwelling fires across the city
- In the latest incident, a dwelling fire devastated a shack in Alexandra, Johannesburg, claiming the life of a six-year-old
- Mosa Kubayi died after a fire spread from another dwelling to the four-room, double-storey home where he lived in Alexandra
- Johannesburg EMS's Robert Mulaudzi told Briefly News his department had recorded 15 fires and one fatality since winter started
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JOHANNESBURG — The Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) has expressed concern over the number of dwelling fires that break out during winter.
Since the start of the season, the city has recorded 15 fire incidents, half of which occurred at informal settlements.
Boy killed in Alexandra shack fire
In one of the latest, a six-year-old boy died in a blaze at a Johannesburg dwelling, marking the first fatal incident.
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It comes after a fire gutted the four-room, double-storey shack where he lived on 6th Avenue, Alexandra, at about 05:11 on Tuesday, 16 July.
Emergency services recovered Mosa Kubayi's charred remains during the subsequent search and recovery operation.
Johannesburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi, in an exclusive Briefly News interview, said firefighters arrived at the scene within several minutes of receiving the call and extinguished the blaze in about 30 minutes.
It was the seventh fire recorded in Alexandra this winter and the only fatality from the 15 fire events.
"The cause of the fire incident has not been established yet and investigations are underway to determine the cause," Mulaudzi told Briefly News.
He said the emergency services were concerned about the number of fire incidents caused, among others, by the unsafe use of heating devices.
"We urge residents to exercise caution when using heating devices, including heaters, paraffin stoves, candles, braziers/ "mbaula", and not to leave them unattended while in use to prevent fire incidents at home."
Applying safety precautions
He said residents who use braziers must do so in a well-ventilated area and remember to take them out before bed.
"More importantly, they should avoid using coal-fuelled braziers as coal can not only cause health problems but also be highly flammable if it comes in contact with materials which can burn quickly."
However, Mulaudzi said the emergency services embarked on continuous public fire safety educational drives, attributing to a considerable reduction in fire-related incidents.
It did this through a public education unit undertaken in most informal settlements, including Alexandra, Booysens, and Kya Sands.
"Over and above the educational drives, we have Besafe Centres, spread across all seven regions in the city, where residents, among others, receive free first aid and basic firefighting training.
1 Dead, 6 hospitalised, 44 displaced in Germiston old age home fire
In related news, Briefly News reported that one person died and dozens more were displaced following a fire at Die Anker Tehuis old age home in Germiston on Gauteng's Eastrand.
Six other people were hospitalised for smoke inhalation after the building caught alight earlier on Thursday, 18 July.
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Source: Briefly News
