Ngwathe Local Municipality this week responded to allegations by a community member claiming difficulty to get hold of the Fire and Rescue Service and slow response in attending to a house fire in the informal settlement of the Mandela section in Tumahole on May 27.

Ngwathe’s Communication Service in their reaction said that the fire service arrived on the scene within 10 minutes after the call was received at 13:05. The fire sercvice personnel left the scene at 15:42. Allegations that the firefighter did not have water, was also denied.

Ngwathe stated that all emergency vehicles are inspected and need to refill when arriving at the station after attending to a call.

“When leaving the station on the day of the call the tank was full, but had to refill at the station due to the magnitude of the fire,” was said.

The correct contact numbers for the Ngwathe Fire and Rescue Service in Parys are:
067 424 2372 / 082 909 3464