Durban - The family of those who died in the blaze in a South Beach flat at the weekend were grappling with the scale of the tragedy on monday.
Tanya Williams, the mother of the boy who died, said he was so looking forward to getting his yellow belt in karate.
Three generations – Chereldene Hamann, 55, her father Benjamin Collins, 80, and Hamann’s 6-year-old grandson, Milano Williams – died when their Prince Street flat caught alight on Saturday.
The only survivor, Rudy Berries, was still battling to speak to the media on monday.
Police spokesman, Major Thulani Zwane, said the cause of the fire was unknown. Point police have opened an inquest docket.
Hamann worked in the administration department of the SABC in Durban. She had six grandchildren and four children, Tanya, Natasha Olivier and Nathaniel Hamann.
Collins lived with Chereldene every alternate month. He also lived in Gauteng with his son, Edmund.
He was a former seaman with Safmarine.
Milano lived with his granny Chereldene and attended Grade 1 at Addington Primary.
“Two words can describe my mother,” said Olivier. “Mother Teresa. She was the matriarch of the family.”
Chereldene’s husband, Harold Hamann, 60, who lives in Gauteng, said he had looked forward to spending quality time with his wife at the long weekend, but she had work commitments.
They had rescheduled for this Friday. Now he is trying to sort out paperwork for her burial. He broke down in tears as he recalled memories of her.
“I spoke to her on Friday and she was her usual self. I cannot believe she died in such tragic circumstances. We had plans for our future and the grandchildren. She did mention she had a financial problem paying the lights bill,” he said.
Hamann said the municipality had cut the electricity supply to the flat on Friday, a long weekend.
He said his wife would have paid the bill, as she had been doing. He said a notice to terminate the electricity slip showed the account was in arrears of R476.
He said the family had been using candles but he did not know if any candles were lit at the time of the fire.
Williams said she found it strange that her mother sent her an SMS an hour before the incident.
She had wished Williams’s daughter a happy 18th birthday.
Berries sat stunned and did not want to speak during the interview. The family had tried to get access to the Falaise flat in Prince Street to search for identification documents.
On monday the building supervisor, Michael Wait, asked that it be clarified that he did not enter the flat as stated by another resident.
Wait said he assessed the situation and thought it was too dangerous to enter the flat. It could have been a case of mistaken identity as residents avoided the smoke, he said.
Funeral plans for the two adults are on hold while the family wait for the results of DNA tests for the police to confirm their identity.
Hamann said he was interested to see the police and fire department report on the cause of the fire.
“I would not know how to react if and when I go into the flat. We were also not allowed to view the bodies (of Chereldene and her father) at the mortuary.
“Milano was different because he had not been extensively burnt. He could have died of smoke inhalation.
“The family are making arrangements for his funeral,” Hamann said.
Chereldene attended the St Peter’s Catholic Church in Mahatma Gandhi (Point) Road.
She was a catechism teacher, a choir member and a member of the Catholic Women’s League and the St Vincent de Paul Society, which takes care of the poor.
Williams said that on many occasions her mother helped the needy, including bringing a homeless person home for Christmas lunch.
She kept fit by walking on the beachfront promenade and participating in fun walks.
Hamann thanked all those involved in extinguishing the blaze and assisting the family.
“She was elated at her surprise birthday party held two weeks ago. I sung my heart out to her not knowing this tragedy would befall us,” Williams said.
Daily News