By Rivonia Naidu and Sapa
People living on the border of the Engen Refinery on the Bluff in Durban have lashed out at the municipality, labelling officials liars and accusing them of being negligent and callous.
This morning, the city's biggest storage tank fire continued to burn, after refinery officials decided on letting the fire burn itself out.
The blaze, which soared 60 to 80m into the sky, was reportedly caused by a lightning strike and could be seen from miles away.
Engen reported that petrol and equipment worth about R120-million were destroyed by the fire.
Willem Oosthuizen, general manager of the refinery, said the 45m-high petrol tank contained 7,5 million litres of petrol.
Oosthuizen said the tank had been 80 percent full at the time of the incident and that 40 percent of its contents had been salvaged.
The company estimated that the damaged facilities would cost between R60- to R80-million to replace and the fuel carried a price tag of R40 million.
When the Daily News arrived at the scene yesterday afternoon, roads to residential areas adjacent to the refinery were still cordoned off and thousands of residents living in the Durban South Basin made their way to nearby hillsides to watch the blaze, which had started on Monday at about 7pm.
But those living on the border of the refinery were not impressed.
Albert Stephens, who lives five houses away from the refinery fence, said: "Does Durban have a disaster plan? I think not. I haven't heard anything from either the refinery authorities or the municipality."
He said that when he phoned the refinery environment office on Monday night, the person who answered said she knew about the fire, "but could not give us information or advice".
Bluff resident Llouwellen Jacobs said there has never been any disaster management or evacuation plan given to people living in this area.
"I've sat on different community forums and the issue of a disaster management or evacuation plan has been brought up numerous times, but the municipality hasn't assisted us with any information," he said.
Bang
Naomi Harrison, who lives on Ballerina Terrace next to the refinery fence, said when she heard the bang and saw the mass of orange flames, she "grabbed her handbag, children and made a duck for it".
She believes strongly that the municipality and relevant authorities are trying to downplay what happened.
"Telling us that the fumes are not toxic is complete rubbish. This is a full tank of petrol that has burned. People living in the entire Durban South Basin just sit and wait for the worst to happen, that is how bad it is here," she said.
Harrison added: "I agree there are all sorts of disasters that could happen, but we are living next to an oil refinery. How many different disaster management or evacuation plans do you need?" she asked angrily.
Carl and Gillian King, who also live next to the oil refinery's fence, said when they saw the flames and thick black smoke coming towards their home, they grabbed their 5-week-old baby and fled.
Gillian said: "We don't know of any basic procedures, which is all we ask for. And then to hear Mike Sutcliffe say the city does have a disaster management plan is news to us."
When questioned about the "toxic fumes and disaster management plan", city manager Dr Mike Sutcliffe said: "The city does have a disaster management plan, but each disaster has a different level of operation.
"We can't always use the same procedure, so it is not something that can be placed on paper and handed out to residents."