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Plea for donations to assist fire fighters

Flames coming from the building
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While donations are flooding in from across Johannesburg to assist fire fighters battling blazes in and around the city on Wednesday night, organisers say more supplies are needed.

Fire fighters are still battling a blaze at the Bank of Lisbon building used by three Gauteng provincial government departments in the CBD. The fire claimed the lives of 3 firefighters  earlier on Wednesday. Another 40 fire fighters are on the scene of a factory fire in Kya Sands.

Organisers say they still need donations of water, energy drinks, energy bars, eye drops, plastics cups and salty snacks. Donations can be dropped off at Sophiatown, Linden or Douglasdale Police stations, or at the Florida Fire station on the West rand. All donations will be split between the two teams of fire fighters still battling the blazes.

Meanwhile, Gauteng Premier David Makhura says a report released last week reveals seven buildings, besides the site of Wednesday’s fire, have been identified in the Johannesburg CBD as being non-compliant with safety regulations. Makhura also revealed that three provincial departments use the building, not two as authorities had said earlier: the Co-operative Governance Department as well as those of Health and Infrastructure Development.

“We have been working with the unions very closely and workers themselves from time to time raise issues about the conditions of buildings and then we bring the department of infrastructure development to confirm. So as I say the latest report was just last week. We have 7 other buildings and I have taken a decision that we will have to find temporary accommodation for staff in all those buildings. All the staff with regard to the 3 departments that are in here for now they can’t come to work tomorrow because we are sorting out emergency accommodation for them.”

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