52 dead in central Johannesburg apartment block fire

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52 dead in central Johannesburg apartment block fire

8:39 CAT | 31 Aug 2023

Emergency services say 52 people have died in a fire in afive-storey building in Marshalltown, central Johannesburg Dozens more have been injured in the blaze . [Photo: Reuters[

At least 52 people have died after a fire broke out in a block of flats in Johannesburg, South African authorities say.

More than 40 others are injured.

Johannesburg officials say it is unclear what sparked the blaze at the five-storey building in the city centre.

A spokesman for the emergency services, Robert Mulaudzi, told the BBC that firefighters had been able to bring out some of the occupants.

He said the fire had gutted the building, and that the search for other victims was continuing.

“We are moving floor by floor conducting these body recoveries,” Mr Mulaudzi told local broadcaster ENCA.

A video posted to the platform X, formerly known as Twitter, by Mr Mulaudzi showed fire trucks and ambulances outside the building with burnt out windows.

Photos from the scene showed covered bodies lined up near the burned building.

Reports suggest the occupants of the building were mostly migrants from other African countries.