The tragic death of a 46-year-old female driver after a burning bluegum tree fell on her car on 16 August has raised many questions from various sources regarding disaster management in the City of Johannesburg.
According to a damning report by the Roodekrans Neighbourhood Watch’s (RNW) patrollers the events of the day played out as follows (times are approximate):
• 10.15am: The first RNW patroller arrives at the scene of the fire. The fire is burning from Azalea Street in the direction of Foxglove Avenue. According to the patrollers’ report the “wind was blowing hard and the fire was quickly spreading. We had to switch on our hazards due to the smoke almost being visibly impenetrable for motorists. We feared an accident”. The Patrollers repeatedly phone their control room to have Emergency Management Services (EMS) dispatched, but to no avail. At this stage the fire was raging high and right up to residential boundary walls.
• 10.30am – 10.45am: EMS arrives and tries to put out the fire manually and by using other equipment without success. When questioned why they are not using water the patrollers are told that there is no water on the fire truck. (EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi later denies this saying that though there were no hydrants close by, there was water on the truck.)
• 10.45am – 11.15am: EMS desperately tries to make firebreaks but has trouble keeping up. Residences are “made safe” but the rest of the veld is left burning.
“Let the veld finish burning otherwise we’ll have to return to put it out again anyway,” is EMS members’ response as they leave.
• 12 noon: Another EMS vehicle arrives and partially extinguishes part of the fire but leaves the rest including trees and stumps burning. At this stage visibility has increased but JMPD has yet to arrive to assist.
• 2.15pm: Patrollers receive news of a serious accident on Wilgerood. A second accident takes place in the meantime and patrollers have to divide themselves between the two scenes.
• 2.20pm: ER24 already had declared the driver dead on whose car the tree fell. Patrollers start closing the road and redirecting traffic through the suburbs. Despite calling JMPD they do not show up. JMPD’s 54 Squad that deals with fatal accident scenes arrives considerably later but when the patrollers who are getting desperate with an ever-increasing traffic problem ask them to assist they allegedly are told “it is not our job”.
• 4pm: JMPD arrives after repeated calls.
• 4pm onwards: Patrollers have to deal with peak-time traffic that is being redirected, but another four accidents occurred. Out of desperation patrollers summon Councillor Suzanne Clarke . Only after her involvement JMPD arrives. When she confronts EMS as to why they are only extinguishing the fire at that time, she is told “it posed no threat in the morning”.
• 8pm: JMPD finally is manning the situation and patrollers get to leave.
The following questions are raised:
• Why was the fire not put out properly in the morning?
• If the smoke was billowing across the road in the morning already and endangering motorists, why was the road not closed then?
• Where was JMPD for most of the day? (Speed trapping?)
• In the aftermath why did every department engage in blame shifting as to who was supposed to do what? For example who should have made the decision to close the road to prevent a tragedy?
• Why were the public’s calls not heeded and action only taken when somebody with some political muscle got involved?
• Who should have assessed the potential for a tragedy from the outset?
According to Mulaudzi “it is unfair of the community to come so hard on us” and “we did everything we could”.
The Record asked the relevant parties to explain and to inform the public via the Record about both the micro and the macro disaster management plans that the City has in place.
