City Power said it will investigate the cause of the fatal incident that claimed two lives, leaving three others injured in the Johannesburg Central Business District (CBD).
On Saturday morning, Johannesburg Emergency Services (EMS) reported that they were attending to an incident where five contract workers from Solid Management were stuck underground in a manhole while working.
“Three people were taken to medical facilities, and two died from fumes from the generator,” said City of Joburg EMS spokesperson Nana Radebe-Kgiba.
The power utility said it is deeply saddened by what they called a devastating incident that resulted in the unfortunate deaths of contracted technicians and the injury of three others.
The one person was still trapped underground with the hope that they were going to be retrieved alive; however, he was declared dead on the scene.
This occurred while the EMS worked on extracting the remaining individual until late in the day.
City Power said this tragic incident occurred inside the utility’s underground tunnels along Commissioner and Von Brandis streets in the CBD.
City Power spokesperson Isaac Mangena said it was not clear what caused the incident, but the entity, along with all relevant authorities, was conducting investigations into the circumstances that led to this fatal incident.
Mangena said the five contracted technicians were responding to a case of cable theft that happened recently.
He said the technicians started by replacing and repairing the cable that had been cut and stolen. Saturday was their second day on site.
“As soon as further details become available, we will inform the public.
“We would like to send our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the deceased. We also wish a speedy recovery to those contractors who were rescued and rushed to hospital,” said Mangena.
Meanwhile, in the early hours of Saturday, the EMS responded to a structural fire incident at Springfield, near Booysens.
Radebe-Kgiba said on arrival, firefighter crews found the chemical factory well alight. With six fire engines on the site, the roaring flames were fought and put out.
“Fortunately, no casualties were reported. The cause of the fire is currently being investigated by police,” said Radebe-Kgiba.
Later on Saturday, the EMS’ male and female firemen had to deal with a third emergency — a burning building in Jeppestown.
“This is one of the abandoned buildings in the CBD. The fire affected about 15 shacks. At this stage, there are no injuries that have been reported. The cause of the fire is still a subject of investigation,” said another EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi.
According to reports, this is one of the hijacked buildings and over the last few years, those have proven to be problematic and have led to tragic deaths.
In August this year, four people died, three were critically injured in a fire incident in Jeppestown, and over 200 people were displaced.
The deadliest fire incident happened in August 2023, in a hijacked Usindiso Building where 77 people died and 88 others were injured.
The Star