By Correspondent
City of Bulawayo has refuted allegations of a delayed response to a fire that destroyed a house.
The fire occurred at No. 43A Duncan Road, Suburbs on July 27 and destroyed the property.
However Bulawayo City Council Corporate Communications Manager Nesisa Mpofu has come out in defence of the authority.
She says they deployed 10,400 liters of water from their vehicles and two fire hydrants to combat the blaze.
“The allegations that the Fire Brigade came with an empty truck are not true.
“Firefighting operations and rescue operations for the property immediately commenced as soon as the firefighting teams arrived on site.
“The City of Bulawayo, like all Fire Services all over the world relies on the hydrant system.
“(It) carries enough water to allow time to connect to the hydrant.
“The Fire Brigades team reaction time was 1 minute to leave the station and this was witnessed by the running caller who attests to this in written confirmation,” she said.
According to the brigade, they received a call about the fire at 11:45 PM.
They dispatched four fire engines to the scene within five minutes.
However, by the the time they arrived the house was already engulfed in flames and collapsing.
They also denied claims that they arrived at the scene with an empty truck.
“It should also be noted that fire engines are always kept full of water and there is no given time you will find the fire engines without water,” she said.
Contrary Narrative
Investigations indicate that the fire was caused by an electrical fault.
It occurred shortly after power restoration.
Eyewitnesses reported hearing an explosion followed by the rapid spread of flames.
However, the owner of the house Mrs Ntombizanele expressed her dissatisfaction with the fire brigade team.
She said she called several times but they did not arrive until her neighbour had to drive to their Famona base to fetch them.
“The fire brigade was called immediately but only arrived at the scene after my neighbour had gone in person to their Famona base to fetch them.
“Unfortunately, they came without water to extinguish the fire, and by the time they tried to help, the house was nearly completely destroyed,” she said.
Vella said the valuables lost in the fire could be worth approximately US$$350 000.
