Residents rally together to rebuild

Four days after a devastating fire broke out at the Jumpers Informal Settlement in Cleveland, residents are rebuilding their homes.

“We have nowhere else to go and giving up means we will have no roof over our heads,” said Nomsa Thango, one of the resident who lost everything in the fire.

According to residents of Jumpers, the fire was caused by a stove which was left unattended. An estimated 250 shacks were destroyed in the blaze.

Jumpers residents have a fighting spirit, which helps them to rebuild their homes.

Despite the adverse circumstances, residents are standing together and supporting one another to get back on their feet.

Imelda Phatsoa

Imelda Phatsoa from Lesotho said she arrived in Jumpers three months ago to join her husband, who has been living in Jumpers for the past three years.

“My husband came to Johannnesburg to look for work. He started with temporary work and eventually found a better, full time job. He asked me to come and live with him three months ago. Now we are left with nothing. I’m old and not well. The only thing I’m left with is my baptism certificate,” said Mrs Phatsoa, while sitting outside the tent that social development provided to the destitute as temporary accommodation.

“It has been difficult since Saturday because I’m not well and I can’t move around much because of my leg. I depend on my husband to help me and when he goes to work, I depend on people who are willing to help me,” said Mrs Phatsoa.

A tearful Mrs Photsoa said she hopes to receive assistance in obtaining new identity documents.

Nomsa Thango

“It was a massive fire,” said Mrs Nomsa Thango.

“We have had fires before but this one burnt down a lot of shacks. We tried to save as much as possible, but the fire just spread too fast,” she said.

Mrs Thango has been living in Jumpers for the past three years.

She came to Johannesburg to seek a better life for her family. She lives with her husband who is working odd jobs to make a living.

“My husband and I work for our children. Because of the poor living conditions here, we sent our children to live with their grandmother in KwaZulu-Natal.

“If they were here, they would have experienced the trauma of losing a home. All our belongings were destroyed in the fire but (local) government came to our rescue by providing tents for those who lost their homes to the fire,” said Mrs Thango.

Thulisiwe Msebeni

“I was at work when the fire started and I was unable to save anything,” said Ms Thulisiwe Msebeni.

Ms Msebeni said she had to take time off work to rebuild her home and to receive any kind of aid provided.

“I have lost all my important documentation and now I have to be here to receive assistance from the government. I can’t even go to work because some people who don’t even live in Jumpers come and take our space – if you are not here, you will find yourself with no space to build. The municipality has stopped us from building because they say they want to cut the trees first and flatten the ground before we can start building,” said Ms Msebeni.

All the residents of Jumpers, even those who did not lose their shacks to the fire, have been affected by the most recent incident.

Residents have come together, offering help to one another.

Those who still have homes have opened their homes to others, while they rebuild their lives and try to get things back to normal.