VIDEO: Huge loss after fire at Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital
Though the final findings from the West Rand Disaster Management Team have as of the time of writing this article not been made public, the hospital's management believes they understand what caused the fire
Nurses give their all to their patients, regularly putting all they have into their work. Imagine then the feelings of the four nurses at the Sterkfontein Psychiatric Hospital whose home burned down one windy night.
One nurse living on the ground floor woke up in the early morning hours of this particular Saturday night, 31 August, to a raging fire outside. She rushed upstairs to wake the only other house occupant at the time. The other two nurses who lived in the house were out that night, one working the night shift and another visiting family outside the hospital grounds.
The fire was reported at about 5am, and the Krugersdorp Fire Department was contacted. Firefighters reportedly responded quickly and extinguished the fire.
“Unfortunately, the damage was so extensive that they could not save some of the items that were in the house,” explained the hospital’s Chief Executive Officer, Jimmy Mapunya, as he studied the preliminary incident report on his desk.
Though the final findings from the West Rand Disaster Management Team have as of the time of writing this article not been made public, the hospital’s management believes they understand what caused the fire.
“The preliminary finding is that the night superintendent reported that when he took over the night shift on the Friday the 30th, he got a report that there had been a fire in and around the accommodation at the communal houses earlier,” Mapunya noted. This fire occurred the day before the house fire and was contained.
Their best guess, they noted, would be that some of the coals from the previous fire might not have been extinguished completely and were still smouldering. One or more of these coals might have begun burning again, spreading the flames toward the house. Dry grass, trees and leaves caught fire, and the exceptionally strong wind may have driven the fire towards the house. This is yet to be confirmed or disproved by the final disaster report.
Also Read:
https://www.citizen.co.za/krugersdorp-news/388582/watch-does-krugersdorp-have-the-toughest-firefighter/
“At a glance, one can confirm that there was definitely fire around the house, within the grass and trees close to the house. At this stage we don’t know how the fire got to the first floor, but there are trees around the windows very close to the house,” said Mapunya.
The area was cleaned up after this occurrence – the grass was trimmed and some trees cut down. None of the occupants or other staff or residents were harmed. The hospital’s management also asked that the public be careful with exposed fires near and around the hospital as something being ignited near the road or on the adjacent land could spread to the hospital grounds and cause serious damage or injury to patients, staff and visitors.
The hospital is reaching out to the public to help the nurses start over by donating any household appliances, blankets, food and the like. Donations can be handed over to the hospital directly.
