Four people lost lives, and three others were seriously injured in a fire that broke out in an abandoned building in Jeppestown, Johannesburg, early Sunday morning.
Johannesburg Emergency Medical Services (EMS) spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said three people died at the scene, and three others were injured while trying to escape the fire.
Mulaudzi said several people are still missing.
“We don’t know if they are trapped in the building or if they are away for the weekend, so we’re just going through all the floors to make sure that there are no outstanding bodies that we can find on site,” Mulaudzi said. The number of deaths later increased to four.
Early investigations suggest the fire may have been caused by an illegal electrical connection.
The building’s residents used materials like ceiling boards and curtains to divide rooms, which might have made the fire spread quickly.
“City Power will also have to come in because there are lots of illegal connections, so now it’ll be a multidisciplinary effort to make sure that we recover other bodies which are still there,” Mulaudzi explained.
He said the cause of the fire is still being investigated, and the South African Police Service is now in charge of the scene.
This tragedy comes almost a year after another fire at the Usindiso Building, which killed 78 people on 1 September.
Pictured Above: The burning building in Jeppestown, Johannesburg.
