Durban – Construction work is nearly complete to rebuild the flats that were razed by a fire at the Grey Street Mosque complex on Denis Hurley Street in August.
Seven flats that are part of the 139-year-old Grey Street Mosque – known as Jumu‘ah Masjid – had been destroyed. The flats were built 75 years ago on the outer perimeter. The Juma Masjid Trust received a R7 million insurance payout in September to start renovations.
Altacon spokesperson Altaaf Essop said the flats were brought back to floor level, walls damaged by the fire had to be rebuilt and roofing was completed. Essop said the flats had never been revamped since it was built.
“It was quite a task to upgrade and bring it to modern standards while complying with Amafa (Zulu for Heritage KwaZulu-Natal) guidelines. It was difficult to get the moulds for the pillars, but we have a specialist plasterer artist on site who crafted it by hand. The building includes fire retardant to prevent a fire from spreading rapidly between the flats.
Trustee AV Mahomed said despite manufacturing companies being closed due to the Covid-19 lockdown, contractors were able to source material.
