76-Year-Old survives collapsed wall
A 76-year-old man along with four other residents survived after a wall collapsed at their property.
JOHANNESBURG – Five residents woke up in shock when a big wall fell from the roof to smash a television set and a table at 05:00 on Friday February 28, while they were asleep in their home on Genet Street, Ridgeway.
The house is home to a 76-year-old man, who resides with his wife and three children. Their dog survived death as it was asleep under a table a few inches from where the wall smashed.
The wall broke into several blocks as it came down, crashing through the ceiling to land next to sofas and a bed. The house is approximately 50 years old and nothing like this has happened before.
Meanwhile, Standard Bank Home Insurance rejected the claim to fix the house, saying the building was faulty.
“Standard Bank Home Insurance cannot fix the house, because the source of this damage is not covered in our policy. Management also felt that the decision to reject the claim was fair,” said claims consultant Gazelle Marstiy.
The insurance sent an assessor and an engineer to inspect the damage and they believe that the building was faulty. Damage covered in the policy includes theft, lightning, fire, storm and explosion.
“Thank goodness the wall did not hit anyone who was asleep when it fell. They could have all died from that kind of accident. I am happy everybody and the dog came out alright.
“I want people who own houses to see this and ask their insurance companies to come and check their houses for faults, so that they are not surprised when their claims are rejected,” said Glen Bakos, who intends to reclaim on behalf of his father, the owner of the house.
