Calls for risk assessment of Joburg CBD buildings after several ‘mind-boggling’ fires – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

Johannesburg Safety MMC Mgcini Tshwaku has called for a risk assessment of buildings in the CBD after several “mind-boggling” fires. 

On Wednesday, a South African Revenue Services (Sars) building in the district caught fire at Fredderick and Rissik Street. The fire was contained to the basement level, which is used for storage. No injuries were reported. 

ALSO READ: Yet another fire in Joburg CBD – this time at Sars building in Marshalltown

The recent fire added to a concerning trend of fire outbreaks in the city’s CBD over the last few weeks, including the Johannesburg Metro Centre on Saturday and the Usindiso Building, where at least 77 people died. 

Mind-boggling fires

“One of the things that we are going to call for is that each and every building must do a fire risk and safety assessment to check because these fires are mind-boggling,” said Tshwaku. 

“Here [the Sars building] is a basement, an archiving area and no one goes in there, but it caught fire. We really need to check what is happening.”

♦️Watch♦️ pic.twitter.com/ixCbCe7HOy

— COJ People’s MMC Public Safety (@PublicSafetyMMC) September 20, 2023

Tshwaku said it would be “interesting” to find out that what happened at the Sars building was the same thing that happened at Charlotte Maxeke Johannesburg…