JOHANNESBURG-SOUTH AFRICA
More than 50 people have been killed and over 40 injured in a fire that gutted a five-storeyed building in central Johannesburg on Thursday, the South African city’s emergency services has confirmed.
“Among the injured, some suffered from smoke inhalation and were taken for treatment at local hospitals,” the Emergency Management Services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said.
“We are now on 63 fatalities and 43 people injured who were transported to various healthcare facilities,” Mulaudzi told South African broadcaster ENCA. He previously revealed that 52 people had been killed in the fire.
While it was not immediately clear what caused the blaze, which broke out overnight, firefighters who were called to the scene put out the flames and initiated search and recovery operations, AFP reported.
“We are moving floor by floor conducting these body recoveries,” Mulaudzi said, adding the death toll was expected to rise.
The building, which has been evacuated, is located in a deprived area of what used to be the business district of South Africa’s economic hub, and was used as an informal settlement, Mulaudzi said.
Television footage showed fire trucks and ambulances outside the red and white building with burned-out windows, which had been cordoned off by police.