One year on, some survivors from Usindiso building reeling from trauma

JOHANNESBURG - As Saturday marks a year since the devastating Marshalltown fire, some survivors are still grappling with emotional and mental scars.

Thirty-year-old Zabi Khumalo, who narrowly escaped the blaze, has turned to alcohol to manage stress and trauma from the incident. 

Despite his ongoing struggle, he has yet to receive psychosocial support or counselling, as he grieves the loss of his girlfriend, who is among the over 70 people who died in the fire. 

Khumalo was asleep on the fourth floor of the Usindiso building on August 31 last year when he was awakened by the thick smell of smoke filling his room. 

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He said he covered his nose and mouth with a cloth while desperately searching for a way to escape the burning building. 

Khumalo remembers seeing babies and elderly people trapped in the corridors as he jumped from a window on the fourth floor. 

He said the scenes are etched in his memory and has sleepless nights. 

"It pains me deeply because I've turned to excessive drinking. I now live in a shack, and I'm constantly fearful that another fire might break out. You can imagine just how terrified I am," Khumalo said.

Khumalo said what pains him the most is that he wasn’t able to save his girlfriend who died in the fire.