dyton mupawaenda
Talent Gore
THE Harare City Council has launched a crackdown on buildings in the capital, which do not have fire compliance certificates, and has warned that it will lock up buildings which do not comply.
Harare Town Clerk, Engineer Phakamile Mabhena Moyo, said:
“Buildings, which are not compliant, will be immediately locked up,” he said.
“We, therefore, urge building owners to visit our Fire Brigade depot for arrangements to have their premises inspected before the compulsory inspections.”
The crackdown comes at a time when a series of fires have been recorded in the last two weeks in Harare with the major one being the Mbare Musika fire, in which goods worth thousands of dollars were destroyed.
In another case, one person was seriously injured while goods, worth thousands of dollars, were reduced to ashes after a fire broke out at a shop, Mangas Fabric, located along Fidel Castro Road on Friday.
In another case, a suspected electrical fault sparked a massive fire at a Willowvale garage on Saturday.
Poor maintenance of buildings, illegal electrical connections and reckless behaviour by occupants and some building owners are the leading causes of these fires.
In June this year, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume said 780 calls were recorded by the Fire Brigade.
Bongani Ndlovu
Mathew Masinge