Just two weeks after the City of Johannesburg received a fleet of new fire engines to service under-resourced communities, one of the trucks was stoned, and firefighters were attacked in Soweto, south of Johannesburg.
The attack has raised concerns as the city grapples with service delivery challenges.
Firefighters were responding to a shack fire at the Elias Motswaledi Informal Settlement on Saturday, at about 3pm, when residents attacked the fire engine and its crew.
Attack
It’s unclear why residents attacked the vehicle, but City of Johannesburg Emergency Services (EMS) spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the incident was concerning.
“City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services has noted with concern the incident which occurred yesterday in Soweto at the Elias Motswaledi Informal Settlement. One of the Brand new state-of-the-art fire engines, handed over two weeks ago during the launch of the Central Fire Station, was stoned along with firefighters responding to a Shack on fire incident in the area.
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“Firefighters had to run for their lives while local residents were attacking them. No injuries were reported during this incident. The vehicle was damaged,” Mulaudzi said.
Safety
Mulaudzi urged residents to protect EMS personnel and resources.
“They are deployed in their respective areas, while rendering this very important essential service to our communities. These attacks not only create fear and panic amongst EMS personnel also disrupt service delivery to our communities.”
The City of Johannesburg EMS received eight of 15 fire engines on 2 October.
Fire engines
“Of the eight new fire engines, several were distributed to fire stations across the city to strengthen “overall coverage.
“This ensures that resources are spread effectively, while maintaining a strong, centrally based capacity to respond rapidly to emergencies,” City of Joburg said at the time.
Central fire station
A new Central Fire Station was also officially opened in Marshalltown. It replaces the old Central Fire Station, a heritage landmark built in the early 1900s, which was shut down in 2018, after more than 100 years of service, due to safety concerns.
According to the city, the station would bring much faster emergency response in the CBD, in high-risk areas like Hillbrow, Yeoville, Berea, Braamfontein and Newtown.
Emergencies
The station was built to accommodate a new platoon of 50 firefighters, enabling them to respond to emergencies quickly and be better prepared.
According to the city of Joburg, the R71 million project was delivered by the Johannesburg Development Agency.
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