Families left destitute as Cinderella Hostel dwellings burns to ground
Some families living in the Cinderella Hostel were left with absolutely nothing after a fire razed their homes to ground in the early hours of September 28.
A total of 13 informal dwellings were consumed by fire, leaving around 22 people badly affected.
It is alleged that the hostel was set alight following an altercation between two Zimbabwean citizens and a South African man.
Apparently, these three men were fighting about a business deal relating to the selling of garden furniture in Boksburg North that turned sour.
All three men fled the scene after the informal dwellings caught fire.
The Boksburg Police, however, managed to arrest one suspect in connection with arson late on September 28.
DA Ward 32 branch chairperson Marius de Vos said he spent the better part of the day (September 28) with the people of Cinderella Hostel who lost everything they had in a fire.
“I was informed by a reliable source that an altercation between two Zimbabwean nationals and a
De Vos added that the people affected by the blaze are both homeless and worse off, given the high unemployment rate at the hostel.
“The ward councillor, Johan Hendricks and I took full control of the situation by providing the people with a meal – literally their first meal for the day – while the other activists distributed clothing and blankets.”
De Vos said the Ekurhuleni Disaster Management distributed blankets and only a once off food parcel.
Hendricks has also offered R2000 for accurate information that could lead to the arrest and successful conviction of the culprit(s).
Ekurhuleni Emergency Services spokesperson William Ntladi has not yet commented on the fire at the time of going to print.
