6 family members die in Boksburg informal settlement fire
Emergency services said the blaze ripped through the Marikana informal settlement in the early hours of Monday morning.
Six family members have died in a fire in Boksburg in Ekurhuleni on the East Rand. Picture: Mongezi Koko/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - Six family members have died in a fire in Boksburg in Ekurhuleni on the East Rand.
Emergency services said the blaze ripped through the Marikana informal settlement in the early hours of Monday morning.
Residents tried to extinguish the fire, but it had already spread and gutted the structure.
Firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze and found six bodies inside, burnt beyond recognition.
The only survivor, a seven-year-old girl, was rushed to hospital with critical burn wounds.
Ekurhuleni emergency services spokesperson William Ntladi said the cause of the fire hasn’t been established yet.
“Unfortunately, the six were declared dead on scene by paramedics, [and] SAPS [South African Police Service] as law enforcement are on site foreseeing rehabilitation.”
Police are still on the scene and have launched an investigation.