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Brand South Africa joins the country in mourning the three firefighters who lost their lives in the line of
duty during the blaze which erupted last week on the 23rd floor of the Bank of Lisbon Building in the Johannesburg inner city.
 
Twenty-eight-year-old Simphiwe Moropane, 40-year-old Mduduzi Ndlovu and 37-year-old Kathutshelo Muedi are being honoured in a memorial service today in Ellis Park, Johannesburg.

Brand South Africa’s Chief Marketing Officer, Ms Linda Magapatona-Sangaret said: “The country has had a number of these tragic fire related incidents in recent years and months. The tragic results have been the loss of lives, the destruction of people’s homes and their displacement and often the destruction of industrial production and the livelihood of people.”

Magapatona-Sangaret added saying “Today’s memorial service is more than a ceremony. It’s an obligation, a recognition that, in a life spent too often caught up in the pursuit of the trivial, we owe it to Muedi, Ndlovu and Moropane that we ensure that people not yet born will someday come to know what they did for society and honour them. We extend our deepest sympathy to their families and are deeply saddened by the loss they have encountered.”

The fire broke out just after 4am on Tuesday 04 September. Firefighters battled a fire on the other side of the building, which took about 45 minutes to extinguish,” said Johannesburg EMS spokesperson Nana Radebe.

The safety of structures in the inner city have been the center of attention after it was revealed that the Bank of Lisbon Building failed to meet regulations. The Gauteng Provincial government has vowed to prioritise occupational health after the deadly fire in the Johannesburg building.

Issued by Brand SA