Emergency Services Urge Caution As Second Blaze Breaks Out in Joburg CBD: “Let’s Be Fire Wise”

• No injuries were reported after a second fire broke out in the past week in the Johannesburg CBD
• Four people were killed and three injured when another fire gutted an abandoned building in Jeppestown recently
• The City of Joburg's Emergency Services have urged residents to take more precautions to prevent further fires

JOHANNESBURG - Joburg Emergency Management Services urges residents to exercise caution following another fire in the central business district (CBD).

The fire, which is the second to have broken out in the past few days, engulfed a residential building on the corners of Plein and Claim Street in the CBD.

City of Joburg EMS confirmed no injuries were reported in the blaze, which only affected one room of the building.

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It is believed to have started on the sixth floor of the building.

Joburg Emergency Management Services urge caution

With a cold front blowing through the country, Joburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi urged residents to be cautious in their attempts to keep warm.

Many have turned to heating devices to stay warm, escalating the risk of fires.

In a video posted to social media, Mulaudzi reminded residents not to leave heating devices unattended.

4 killed in the Jeppestown fire

While no injuries were sustained in the latest fire, it follows the blaze in Jeppestown, which proved fatal.

IOL reported that the blaze broke out in a three-storey building in the early hours of the morning, claiming four lives. Three other people were treated for injuries and smoke inhalation.

Foreign nationals setting up illegal connections are believed to be the cause of that fire.

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Johburg’s history of CBD fires

The recent fires are by no means a new occurrence in the city.

Last year, the BBC conducted an investigation into the problem, highlighting that many of the buildings were deemed unfit to live in.

The premises are occupied by vagrants who set up illegal connections or light open fires in the dilapidated buildings. The most devastating fire in recent years was when over 70 people were killed in a blaze in the CBD in August 2023.

Emergency Services concerned about winter fires

Briefly News also reported on the concern shared by Joburg’s EMS over the number of fires across the city.

EMS spokesperson Mulaudzi highlighted that his department recorded 15 fires and one fatality since winter began.

The fires broke out in dwellings across the city as residents resorted to other means to battle the winter chills.

Source: Briefly News