Boksburg Ward 32 councillor Marius de Vos has urged families affected by the gas tanker explosion to contact him for assistance.

He also pleas to the Minister of Transport, Fikile Mbalula, and Minister of Energy Gwede Mantashe to work with speed to deploy resources to combat unlawful usage of residential roads to move dangerous goods.

“This practice has become prevalent in our communities. The reopening of railway lines must also be fast-tracked to reduce the unlawful use of suburban roads to transport dangerous goods,” says De Vos.

“This tragedy will indeed remain embedded in our memories as a community, for years to come. We thank all the public representatives, first responders, officials, non-governmental and non-profit organisations, and members of the public who immediately rolled up their sleeves to bring relief to the residents affected.

“We also applaud the interventions from both the office of the executive mayor in Ekurhuleni and the office of the Gauteng premier. A special word of thanks goes out to the Gift of the Givers and all other NPOs, religious formations and political parties who came together to offer support and assistance during the aftermath of the explosion.”

Councillor De Vos can be contacted on 081 524 6950.

Meanwhile, Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi says his department will assist the family members of those who died in the Christmas Eve tragedy.

“We will ensure that the workers who lost their lives and those who got injured as well as their families are assisted where applicable through the department’s entities – the Compensation Fund as well as the Unemployment Insurance Fund – as prescribed by both the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act [No 130 of 1993] and Unemployment Insurance Act [No. 63 of 2001] respectively,” Nxesi says.

Furthermore, Gauteng Human Settlements and Infrastructure Development MEC Lebogang Maile says most of the wards at Tambo Memorial Hospital are operational while other repairs are continuing.

“The preliminary engineering assessment report undertaken has shown that the explosion did not cause any visible structural damage that may compromise the structural integrity of the buildings.

“Moreover, visible mechanical damage is found at the X-ray, emergency and theatre wards. All these wards affected by the explosion sustained visible minimal mechanical damage mainly on air conditioning units, which will also be repaired,” Maile adds.