RAPULA MOATSHE
An investigation is under way into the cause of a massive fire that broke out at the Phelindaba Brewery, near Atteridgeville in Pretoria West on Saturday afternoon resulting in the destruction of its decanting and canteen buildings.
The blaze was eventually put out by firefighters from the City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department with one of them left seriously injured during the operation.
Emergency Services spokesperson Lindsay Zwelithini Mnguni, said firefighting resources from multiple fire stations were swiftly dispatched to the scene after the incident was reported to the emergency communication centre after 5pm.
The fire caused a minor spillage from hazardous chemicals such as liquid sodium hydroxide UN1824 (caustic soda) that were being stored in 20 litre plastic cans.
Mnguni said the firefighting resources dispatched to the scene included two fire engines, a ladder, two water tankers, a mobile command unit, a district commander’s unit and a video unit.
The additional resources included a foam tender, two fire engines and a hazardous materials unit.
“While the firefighters were still en route and responding to the scene they could see a large plume of black smoke resulting from the building fire. On arrival, the firefighters found out that the decanting area of the brewery was well alight and the fire had also spread to the canteen building,” Mnguni said.
Despite the challenges, firefighters managed to establish incident command and began aggressive firefighting operations, saving a large portion of the canteen building, where only about a quarter of the building was affected, he said.
“They brought the fire at the decanting area under control at about 6.49pm and continued with cooling down operations as the main structure and the roof had collapsed, creating major voids from the iron sheets,” he said.
He added that several more firefighting resources from fire stations in Hatfield, Heuweloord and Innesdale were dispatched by the emergency communication centre as backup due to the complexity of the incident.
Mnguni said the cause of the fire is still unknown and an investigation is under way.