Overview
- A double-storey house in Doornkop, Soweto, collapsed around 3am on 28 December with six occupants inside, and three people later died, including a one-year-old child.
- Rescuers extricated three people from the rubble and all six were taken to Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, with three survivors still receiving treatment.
- Public Works Minister Dean Macpherson asked the Council for the Built Environment to investigate the cause, identify any responsible parties, and recommend prevention measures, pledging cooperation with regulators.
- Johannesburg’s MMC for Public Safety, Dr Mgcini Tshwaku, planned visits to affected families as the city opened its own inquiry into the incident.
- Economic Development MMC Nomoya Mnisi said the Xaba family will be relocated, naming the deceased as Hloniphile Xaba, her daughter Nqobile, and granddaughter Langelihle, and indicated broader relocations are expected in the area.