A fire started on the upper floor of a furniture store in Morgan Street on Monday evening. At around 18:50 that evening the alarm sounded and Northern Security Response team was activated. Upon arrival the officers noted smoke billowing from the top of the building. They radioed for assistance and the control room activated the necessary personnel to the scene. As per usual, the Tzaneen Neighbourhood Watchmen were on scene moments after the emergency message was circulated and started applying firehoses to the blaze.
Bulletin arrived on scene at 19:20 and noticed that the fire brigade had arrived on scene and firemen were entering the retail store through the front door. The neighbourhood watch members were on the rooftops of the adjoining buildings fighting the fire from the top while the fire department was attacking it from the front. Morgan Street was soon crowded with residents who could not curb their curiosity which caused congestion as they parked their vehicles in the middle of the road and made it difficult for emergency vehicles to move freely up and down the street.
Neighbouring business owners had rushed to save their stores from damage and could be seen throwing buckets of water over portions of their buildings’ exterior in an attempt to prevent the burning embers from landing on their properties and spreading the blaze.
Three hours later the blaze was under control, the damage mitigated, and the firefighters stood down. At the time of going to print, the damage to the building and the cause of the fire had not been determined, but the assessors were conducting their audits and investigations were underway. It is speculated that the fire could have started because of an electrical fault shortly after a power dip was experienced in the CBD on the evening in question. This however, could not be confirmed at the time of going to print.
