Joburg residents warned to use heating devices responsibly amid looming cold snap

The South African Weather Services said there would be a drop in temperatures over the inland provinces on Friday. 

 

Joburg emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said disaster teams are ready to respond to any emergencies that might occur during the cold snap.

 

“This drop in temperatures means that our residents throughout the City of Johannesburg will be tempted to use all sorts of heating devices to try and warm themselves against these extremely cold temperatures, in the process making themselves vulnerable to fire incidents at home.

 

“We therefore would like to urge all our residents to use all heating devices safely, i.e. heaters, imbaula, paraffin stoves, and candles, not to leave them unattended while in use to prevent fire incidents at home during these extremely cold temperatures,” he said.

 

The warning comes amid a spate of fires at abandoned buildings in the Johannesburg CBD. 

 

On Wednesday evening, firefighters responded to a blaze at a residential building in the CBD. 

 

No casualties or injuries were reported. 

 

In a similar incident, four people were killed in a fire that engulfed a building in Jeppestown over the weekend. 

 

The cause of the fire is still under investigation; however, City Power confirmed on Sunday that the building’s power supply was illegally connected. 

 

In 2023, a fire at the Usindiso building killed 76 people and left thousands of others displaced.

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