Two years after tanker explosion, some Boksburg residents still reeling from tragedy
Forty-one people died in the 2022 explosion, including several healthcare workers.
FILE: South African Police Service (SAPS) officers and forensic experts stand beside bodies in Boksburg, a city east of Johannesburg, on 24 December 2022 when a fuel tanker exploded. Picture: AFP
JOHANNESBURG - Two years ago, Boksburg residents were woken up by a frightening bang.
The noise had come from the truck which was stuck under a railway bridge on Hospital Road, near the Tambo Memorial Hospital.
It was later revealed that it was a gas tanker which had exploded.
Forty-one people died, including several healthcare workers.
On the second anniversary of the incident, community members who lost loved ones are still reeling.
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Rose Mashaba said that she regrets moving to her house, as it's become a constant reminder of the tragedy she faced.
She lived with her two children, two grandkids and her daughter-in-law.
After hearing the disturbing noise, she said that her son called his wife and his sister to see what could have caused the loud bang.
Mashaba said she did not see them go outside, so called out to them when the impact of the explosion reached her house.
"As we were speaking, something exploded and the fire came in through the door. Then I ran and fell in the sitting room and I shouted: 'Hey there's a fire!' There were blazes all over here then I shouted to my children that the house is burning."
The impact of the explosion killed both her children, as well as her daughter-in-law.
Mashaba now takes care of her son’s two children.
They were asleep when the tragedy unfolded.