DURBAN - The City of Johannesburg yesterday honoured Emergency Management Services (EMS) firefighters, including the three who died while trying to put out a fire at the 22-storey Lisbon Bank building in September last year.
The EMS Bravery Awards were given to the firefighters at the Florida Fire Station in Roodepoort. The three firefighters who died - Khathutshelo Muedi, Mduduzi Ndlovu, and Simphiwe Moropana - were represented by their families.
Moropana’s mother, however, said after the ceremony that her son’s family had been neglected since his death.
“Things are tough. Simphiwe was the one who was providing everything for us. No one has come to give us any help since he died. We are suffering we haven’t got anything.”
Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba said at the ceremony: “While we had conveyed our condolences previously, we would like to take this opportunity to again send our heartfelt condolences to the families and the broader EMS family.
“At the time of the incident, allegations of equipment shortage and unavailability of required resources to conduct active firefighting emerged in the media.
“This prompted the city to launch a series of parallel investigations,” said Mashaba, who was accompanied by Public Safety MMC Michael Sun and EMS acting fire chief Arthur Mqwa.
The mayor said the city of Joburg has instituted both internal and external investigations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (Ohasa), by EMS’s forensic fire investigation unit, and external investigations by the Fire Protection Association (FPA) and the Department of Labour.
“Both internal and external investigations are still under way,” said Mashaba.
“The city reassures residents that EMS management is committed to providing effective emergency services.”