Sunday's fire comes less than six months after a major blaze in the city's Marshalltown neighborhood claimed the lives of 77 people. (Johannesburg EMS)
A 30-year-old woman will appear in a Johannesburg magistrate's court charged with murder after two people were killed and four others injured in a house fire in Johannesburg city center over the weekend.
Sunday's fire comes less than six months after a major blaze in the city's Marshalltown neighborhood claimed the lives of 77 people.
Witnesses saw a woman throw paraffin at a two-story building on the corner of Commissioner Street and Nugget Street after an argument with her partner. This was confirmed by Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda on Sunday afternoon.
“It's said to be the result of a domestic dispute. I don't know if it got to the point where she felt the need to set the whole place on fire,” he said.
The city is working to accommodate 200 people evacuated by the fire, according to the Johannesburg Emergency Management Agency.
“Two bodies were found. More than 15 people were rescued from the roof and balcony,” said EMS spokesperson Nana Radebe Kiba.
The city said it plans to move evacuees by Friday to evacuation centers in Denver, where temporary housing was built for victims after the Marshalltown fire. The shelter is also home to families who were evacuated by the Boysens informal settlement fire more than two years ago.
The City of Johannesburg said it was in discussions with the Lesotho Consulate General after it was discovered that many of the building's occupants were Lesotho passport holders.
“We have no obligation to respond, so we are meeting to find out who is in this country legally. [people]” said city spokesperson Ntatisi Modingoane.
Mayor Gwamanda said the city council was in the process of identifying the people who lived in the building.
“We are not turning people away, but we are working on a verification process so that we can provide support to people who are actually victims,” he said.
City Manager Floyd Brink said a man claiming to be the owner of the building where the fire occurred tried to evict the residents, leading to a lawsuit in court. The court order was denied “due to lack of evidence.” [the man] He could not prove that he was the actual owner of the building. ”
Brink said the city is looking for ways to address the issue of hijacked buildings.
“We have started concrete dialogue and discussions with the state-owned agency, the Public Investment Corporation, to address the problem of bad buildings. “We aim to take a possible approach,” he said. He said.
Police said they were investigating.
“So, this case is being investigated as a police matter. But on our part, we are doing everything we can, because we are currently working with the Group Forensic Investigation Department to investigate approximately 188 hijackings. “This is because we are investigating buildings that have been damaged,” Modingoan said.
On Monday, Gwamanda commended city officials for conducting due diligence and said the city was working to prevent the building from being taken over.
“This is the first time in the city’s history that the city has taken the approach of following the processors to avoid being forced into the first stage of fighting by nonprofits and forcing people back into society. 'These are special facilities,' he told journalists.
