(The Post News)– A fire has claimed the lives of six people at the Marikana informal settlements in Ekurhuleni in the early hours of Monday. Investigations to determine the cause of the fire are yet to proceed.
A shack, shared by a family of seven, was set ablaze by an undetermined cause at around 3 o’clock in the morning. Emergency services were dispatched; however, when they arrived on the scene, the place had already been covered by flames.
Among the family members, only one person survived—a seven-year-old girl, who escaped with severe burn wounds and is currently being treated in hospital. Ekurhuleni EMS Spokesperson William Ntladi explained the events following a call reporting the matter at around 03:08 am. Ntladi said that when they got to the scene, the shack was “well lit”, and the occupants were trapped inside.
Additionally, according to Ntladi, they were successful in putting out the fire and keeping it from spreading to the nearby shacks. He further elaborated that during search, rescue, and recovery, we discovered that six of the family members were regrettably burnt beyond recognition, including a one-year-old.
Meanwhile, before emergency responders arrived, the community members had already been trying to put out the fires and assist using the bucket brigade system. They were able to assist the seven-year-old by pulling her out of the shack but unfortunately could not get to the other family members.
A neighbour of the family detailed the incident, noting that they heard someone yelling for assistance and hammering on the shack. The neighbour said that out of the three voices they heard calling out for help, they were able to save only one person. The neighbour also expressed sadness over the matter, noting that if the emergency personnel had arrived at the scene on time, they would have saved at least three or more people.
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