By Sheree Russouw
The medical waste company at which piles of hazardous waste were found rotting inside its Johannesburg plant has been placed under provisional liquidation.
Three weeks ago Saturday Star alerted the Gauteng health department to the potentially dangerous conditions at the Evertrade Medical Waste plant in City Deep, south of Johannesburg.
In December, a Cape Town health inspector discovered rotting body parts piling up at Evertrade's Milnerton premises in Cape Town.
Cash-strapped Evertrade holds the contract to collect and dispose of waste from hospitals and clinics throughout the Western Cape.
It also has a five-year contract with the Gauteng health department, awarded last May, to collect and dispose of waste from several Pretoria hospitals and clinics.
Evertrade financial director Craig Sumption said his company was in rescue talks with its principal backer, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC). "The IDC intends to take us forward and restructure the company. They are in a position to put the required funds into the company," he said.
The IDC has already attached Evertrade's assets and it is under investigation by the Financial Services Board for alleged mismanagement of its pension fund.
Reg Broekman, the head of the medico-legal services unit at the Gauteng health department, said its contract with Evertrade would remain in place.