Noluthando Ngeno4 March 2024 | 6:29

SAPS probing circumstances surrounding charred remains in eThekwini furniture manufacturing business

According to the survivors, all entrances and exits were locked by their employer, which prevented them from escaping the inferno.

SAPS probing circumstances surrounding charred remains in eThekwini furniture manufacturing business

The charred remains of three people were recovered in a building gutted in a fire on Eagle Road in Missionlands on 3 March 2023. Picture: Supplied/@_ArriveAlive on X

DURBAN - The South African Police Service (SAPS) is investigating the circumstances surrounding the discovery of charred remains in a furniture manufacturing business in eThekwini.

The families and friends of four workers went to their place of employment after they failed to return home on Sunday morning, and discovered what appeared to be skeletal remains in the burnt building.

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It’s understood nine Malawian nationals were in the building and working the night shift.

According to the survivors, all entrances and exits were locked by their employer, which prevented them from escaping the inferno.

This led to some of them jumping from the building.

One of the men is still unaccounted for, and authorities are still searching for him.

The eThekwini Fire and Rescue Services are still searching for one more victim after the fire.

Reaction Unit South Africa spokesperson Vinod Singh said, “Five employees jumped out of the windows from the upper level of the building. One person sustained burns to parts of his body, while four of his colleagues were uninjured.”