2 January, Monday marks one year since the fire in the parliamentary precinct broke out and burned some parts of the National Assembly.
The fire broke out in the early hours of Sunday last year and continued burning for
at least three days.
Fire crews responded to a call from police guarding the
national key point within six minutes.
More than 300 men and women were deployed and worked
tirelessly over 70 hours to contain the blaze.
Parliament spokesperson Moloto Mothapo, highlighted that the
incident imposed a collective national trauma that will remembered in the minds
of South Africans for years to come.
"For almost three days the fire tore through the five
floors of the Assembly building and the adjacent Old Assembly wing, collapsing
the roof and destroying hundreds of offices which housed Members of Parliament
and staff and their contents.”
“The accident imposed a collective national trauma that
will be etched in the minds of South Africans for many years," he said.
Mothapo then emphasized the country was tested and added
that they will share more information regarding the rebuilding of the programme
later this week.
"We remain indebted to the extraordinary and selfless
efforts of the members of the Fire and Rescue Service Department for their
prompt response to the fire, which arrested the fire from storming through
other parts of the building and causing even greater damage.
“With this fire crisis, our collective resilience, not only
as this crucial arm of the state but as a nation, was highly tested,"
Mothapo said.
By Lulama Klassen
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