Soshanguve family inconsolable after losing their home in fire
By the time they woke up, the house was gutted in flames so much that they could not salvage anything and instead had to run for their lives.
A family in Soshanguve Block H was left inconsolable after they watched their home burn to the ground in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
The distraught family said they were sleeping only to be woken up by screams from neighbours indicating their house was on fire.
By the time they woke up, the house was gutted in flames so much that they could not salvage anything and instead had to run for their lives.
“I heard screams that there was a fire,” said owner of the house Boy Sibanda.
“When I looked outside, I saw the wooden electricity pole burning.”
Sibanda said the fire started at the pole which is behind his house near where he had been storing tyres the family were selling to try to earn a living.
He explained he could not even save his only source of income.
“I tried to run outside to remove the tyres but it was too late,” he said.
Another family member, Lucky Malahlela, echoed similar sentiments and was saddened at his family’s inability to salvage anything, not even important documents.
Malahlela also highlighted how the fire had affected the children who could not even attend school.
“We lost everything, personal documents, school uniforms, clothes and a lot of other things. We did not even get a chance to salvage anything.
“The children are traumatised, they do not have uniforms and this means we have to start from scratch.”
Mahlasela said they are currently staying in a rental house and are waiting for disaster management to supply them with what they might need.
Despite losing everything to the fire, the family was grateful to have escaped. “We are lucky that no one was injured.”
Tshwane Emergency Services spokesperson Charles Mabaso said the cause of the fire was not yet known; however, “we are aware of allegations that the fire might have been started by a faulty electrical pole”.
“A fire safety officer as well as the electricity department will investigate the cause of the fire. Disaster Management and the Department of Social Development have also been called in for social relief.”
Mabaso said they received the call around 05:00 in the morning about a house that was on fire.
“Upon arrival on the scene, firefighters found a house that was totally ablaze with nearby stacks of tyres also on fire.
“Unfortunately the house was completely burnt. Eleven people have been affected: seven adults and four children.
“The firefighters on the scene managed to pull apart some of the tyres and to completely extinguish the tyres,” Mabaso said.
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