Illegal ‘shebeen’ operation costs family their lives
“The fire was too intense because of the LPG and the lock also made it even more impossible to save them,”
In the early hours of last Monday morning, firefighters were called to a fire in Siyahlala-la.
Anna and her three young children tragically died in the inferno that engulfed their home despite efforts of neighbours to extinguish the flames. Newcastle Fire Protection Services has since issued a statement regarding the incident.
According to reports an explosion rocked the small settlemant, whereafter the flames spread quickly, engulfing the entire rear section of the home.
A team of eight firefighters were dispatched to the scene, and had to work fast to prevent the flames from spreading to the adjacent homes. Their efforts were hampered by the fact the entire home was locked from the inside with heavy-duty padlocks.
“By the look of things, the shack was a fortress the way it was locked,” said Acting Chief Fire Officer, Nelson Mpeko. “Bystanders informed me that there was a huge explosion. This was evident because in the shack there were two generators, two 19 kilogram, two 48 kilogram cylinders and not fewer than five nine kilogram LPG gas cylinders.”
According to the statement, the SAPS had informed Protection Services that ‘Anna’, a widow who resided there with her three children, was using the shack as a ‘shebeen’.
Burnt beyond recognition.
Mr Mpeko said the fire had been so intense inside the shack, that all four victims were ‘burnt beyond recognition’.
“There was absolutely no way that any of the deceased would have made it out of there,” he said. “The fire was too intense because of the LPG and the lock also made it even more impossible to save them,” he concluded.
Enonko Molefe, a neighbour, had previously told the Newcastle Advertiser more about Anna.
“Her name was Anna,” he said. “She was always nice. She always let us charge our phones.”
He said Anna and her children had been living there for almost four years.
