Wits University raises alarm over derelict buildings after two children perish in a fire

PHUTI MOSOMANE

Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Research Institute has confirmed that two children lost their lives on Tuesday night when a building adjacent to theirs in Hillbrow caught fire.
The Institute said the building is illegally occupied and was condemned and deemed unsafe for human habitation years ago.

Robert Mulaudzi, Joburg EMS Spokesperson, said the children, both minors aged five and seven, were found burned beyond recognition.

“The fire has been extinguished. Our crew just recovered two bodies of two young children between the ages of five and seven. They were left inside the flat. They succumbed to smoke inhalation and lost their lives. There were no other injuries. The cause of the fire is still subject to an investigation,” said on Wednesday.

Executive Director of Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute Professor Helen Rees said the institution has requested that the Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda come through for