Pretoria - The cause of a fire that engulfed a Pretoria CBD building and saw two children being rescued last Thursday morning is still unknown.
Two rooms at the residential building were on fire when the fire department arrived.
According to Tshwane Emergency Services there were no injuries when the fire broke out at Koopkrag Building on the corner of Johannes Ramokhoase and Paul Kruger streets.
Emergency services deputy chief and acting spokesperson Peter Matolla said they received a call at 10.05am and rushed to the scene where they rescued two children, unharmed, from the burning building.
He said investigations were under way as to what the cause of the fire could have been and that the cause would be communicated.
“Residents with any information pertaining to this fire are encouraged to reach out to their local authorities.
“We responded to the scene immediately to find two rooms on the second floor of the building were on fire.”
Matolla added that the fire was extinguished by the emergency responders who remained on the scene to monitor the situation.
The incident came weeks after the Itireleng fire that resulted in the death of five children locked inside a shack.
The Itireleng fire was followed by another incident where a fire ravaged the Bushbuckridge informal settlement in Centurion.
Last month, 77 people died, including 12 children, after the Usindiso five-storey building caught fire on August 31 at Marshalltown in Joburg.
Others suffered serious burns and some are still fighting for their lives in hospital.
It is believed that the fire was aided by overcrowding in the building because residents had nowhere else to go.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has since said that the government would have to address the housing shortages and essential services required by residents, during his visit to the charred building.
“We need to find effective ways of dealing with problems of accommodation, housing and services in the inner city.”
He urged officials to “apply their minds” and to find a way of dealing with the housing challenge in the inner city.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced that he was planning to institute a commission of inquiry into the cause of the deadly fire, assisted by Justice and Correctional Services Minister Ronald Lamola.
Lesufi has since appointed retired Justice Sisi Khampepe to lead the inquiry.
Pretoria News