Police dogs are searching for victims this Friday in the rubble of a building in Johannesburg, where 74 people died the day before in a tragic fire that highlighted the crisis of precarious housing in the run-down center of South Africa’s economic capital.
Authorities urged the families of the deceased to go to the mortuary in Soweto to identify the bodies while search operations continue at the site.
At least 74 people, including 12 children, died from fire and smoke on Wednesday night. Many were unable to escape and were locked behind bars in this ill-reputed neighborhood to prevent criminals from entering.
An investigation has been launched, but the tragedy has reignited debate over these abandoned buildings, which are falling into the hands of unscrupulous landlords and mafia gangs who rent them out mainly to migrants or very poor South Africans.
In the center of the former “City of Gold”, an opulent business district during the apartheid era, authorities say there are a thousand buildings of this type that are off the grid and where people heat, cook and light themselves with gas or paraffin .
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During a visit to the site of the tragedy on Thursday evening, President Cyril Ramaphosa pledged to “address the housing problem” in city centers.
The building belonged to the municipality and was even listed as a historical monument.
Under apartheid, black South Africans went there to obtain their “passports,” famous papers that gave them access to white areas of work.
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Most recently used as a refuge for abused women, it has been “raided and kidnapped” in recent years, according to local authorities.
Unfortunately, this drama was “foreseeable,” says opposition city councilor Mervyn Cirota.
“Many of these buildings are controlled by gangs who rent the spaces, leading to overcrowding. There are no toilets, no water, no electricity,” he warns.
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South Africans refer to these buildings as “kidnapped”. The police refuse to enter without compelling reason.
They are areas without rights, where the unemployed, families, criminals or illegal immigrants live.
After apartheid ended three decades ago, the wealthy white population left the center to seek refuge behind high walls and electric fences in peaceful, tree-lined suburban homes.
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Blacks flocking from the countryside in search of work began to occupy the vacant buildings.
Even today, the richest city in the country still attracts people in search of a better life.
This economic migration increases the pressure on housing construction during the crisis. According to the Center for African Affordable Housing Finance (CAHF), the country of almost 60 million people has a 3.7 million housing shortage.
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These buildings “are organized crime. These people know the law and have a network. Some get property documents in good order,” said Lucky Sindane, spokesman for the anti-crime group.
Authorities are conducting sporadic operations to repossess “these crime havens,” he explains, describing the weapons and quantity of drugs discovered at the site.
Municipal brigades, police and sometimes private security forces called “Red Ants” – companies that specialize in driving out “secret intruders” – disembark in large numbers, armed to the teeth and known for their violence.
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