“The whole shopping complex has been gutted by fire and about seven shops are in ashes as we speak now. Nothing has been salvaged out of the burnt shops at all,” said Letsholo.
He expressed concern that as the fire was raging, some people were looting instead of assisting. He said this is against the spirit of botho and the police were overwhelmed by the looters. “Some broke into shops that did not have burglar bars while the fire was still raging and looted.”
The police boss said that they had problems putting off the fierce inferno because the entire Central District does not have fire fighters or fire-fighting equipment. Letsholo said initial reports indicated some men were welding within the area and this caused an overhead diesel tank to catch fire and explode. “Within five minutes, the whole mall was engulfed by a fierce inferno that spiralled out of control as the flammable diesel fuelled it.”
Although no one sustained serious injuries, two people were treated and discharged with minor burns yesterday at the Sekgoma Memorial Hospital. The police said they are still investigating to establish the real cause of the fire.
Eyewitnesses told Mmegi that they saw a huge red fireball after an explosion akin to a powerful bomb blast. “The next thing, there was smoke all over the place and there was commotion with people grappling whatever that they could salvage and dashed,” said a bank employee. The Central District has been fire-prone in recent times.
Last year, the Mahalapye Magistrates’ Court was reduced to ashes by a fire. About two months ago, some hostels at the Lotsane Senior Secondary School were razed by an inferno.
