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2023-01-01 at 17:46 #387789Nat QuinnKeymaster
The families of some of the victims of the Boksburg explosion on 24 December, which has so far claimed 34 lives and injured others, have spoken out about their loss. Meanwhile, the driver of the truck that exploded after it crashed into a bridge is a free man after being released from custody because, the police say, there was no âcase against himâ.
âEverything still feels like a bad dream that one canât wake up from. To see and hear that I lost four of my friends to this horrific incident is bad. Even more, because I have to see their families who are in immense pain breaks my heart because I have never seen them in this state.
âI donât know how to help and be there for them. Iâm not coping but I am trying to be strong for the people around me and my family members. This is just not about my friends but we had a major loss in the community.â
*These were the words of Boksburg resident Marcus Peterson about the explosion that claimed 34 lives, according to the latest figures provided on Friday morning at a memorial service for the victims. The authorities also provided the names of the deceased (see below).
On 24 December, a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanker travelling to Botswana exploded in Boksburg after sustaining damage when passing under a low bridge. The vehicleâs release valve caught on the bridge and a fire started, according to Ekurhuleni Emergency Services, killing 10 people and seriously injuring 26. However, since then, the death toll has risen to 27.
Read more in Daily Maverick: âDeath toll of Boksburg gas tanker blast stands at 18 as government assesses damage to nearby OR Tambo Hospitalâ
The explosion also caused damage to the nearby Tambo Memorial Hospital, leading to its temporary closure.
On Thursday, Daily Maverick interviewed some of the victims of the explosion.
The mood was sombre in Hospital Street where the tragedy occurred. Flowers, candles and messages had been placed on the pavement near where the burn victims lay after the explosion. Family members stopped to pay their respects at the scene.
Visit Daily Maverickâs home page for more news, analysis and investigations
âThe pain is deepâ
Geraldo Geduld lost his wife, Elise, and their 19-year-old son, Janil, in the disaster.
âI canât even put in words the trauma I feel losing a wife of 20 years, my best friend and my partner. On the other hand, a son who was just starting his life,â said Geduld.
âItâs so difficult for a parent to have to bury their child because you always reminisce about the potential they had. We had a vision with my son and wife for our life â now itâs all gone. The pain is deep and I will get over that, but itâs the future that hurts me and a path I have to walk with my daughter.â
The Geduld family had come from Gqeberha in the Eastern Cape to visit relatives in Boksburg for the festive season.
A video of the incident, which has gone viral on social media platforms, shows Janil Geduld asking for help from bystanders, only to be directed to the hospital, where he was later taken and died from his injuries.
Elise Geduld is said to have died on the scene, but her family found her body in the Germiston morgue only on Tuesday after a long search at morgues and hospitals.
âMy son Janil Geduld is the young boy in the video in circulation asking for help. What is saddening is on the video he is asking for help, humbly so, but no one was helping [because] they were too busy taking videos,â said Geraldo Geduld.
âIf only maybe someone offered help in time he could have survived. It was very traumatic seeing my son the way he was and my wife too. It took me a while to confirm my wifeâs body at the morgue. The look on her face, her hair was deurmekaar [messy] ⌠with a broken arm and skin peeling off. I knew she had tattoos of our childrenâs names and thatâs how I could identify her. A part of me has been ripped out and I am trying to find myself again.â
House damaged by explosion
The home of 83-year-old Hendrika Zwanziger in Hospital Street was badly damaged by the explosion, with most of the windows and much of the roofing broken and walls cracked, making it unsafe for human habitation, according to Zwanzigerâs helper, Felicia Mvenya.
Mvenya said they worry that the house could soon collapse. She said she is grateful not to have not been harmed as she was not home at the time of the explosion. However, their gardener, Joseph Nyachalle, sustained burn injuries on his neck and left leg in the explosion, and her friend Zoleka Nqayimbana was still missing.
Nyachalle told Daily Maverick: âIt was a beautiful morning on Saturday. I was doing the garden as usual. Everything happened so fast. One minute I heard a huge explosion and the next second, flames were up in the air. Before I knew it, I was on fire and trying to [get] it off and run before I could be hurt more. Iâm glad to have survived.
âAt this point, I am in so much pain but I have been sent back home from the hospital, bandaged, with just packets of Panado and Brufen tablets. Nothing further was done to make sure I am okay.
âWhen I went back to Vosloorus Hospital yesterday because I was not feeling well I was [sent] home with nothing and told not to come back again. I fear I might get an infection from the burn injuries if not monitored but there is nothing I can do other than hope for the best.â
None of the interviewed families indicated how they are being assisted by the government, except for being given trauma counselling.
NPOs step in
Non-profit organisations including Gift of the Givers and Hope SA Foundation have been providing necessities such as food and blankets to affected families.
Hope SA Foundation CEO Namritha Sivsanker told Daily Maverick: âWhen we arrived on the first day we did not know what to expect and hoped there was a lot of ground support from various organisations and the government, but to our surprise, there was no one helping the victims.
âSo we decided to go door to door, offering support and assistance. Many of them have been excited with just our presence. I am quite disappointed with the lack of compassion from government officials who seem not to be offering the much-needed support to families.â
The Gauteng provincial government and the Ekurhuleni metro hosted a joint memorial service for the victims on Friday.
Fuzzy details on the case of the driverÂ
On Wednesday, the National Prosecuting Authority told the media that the police had on Tuesday released the driver of the LPG tanker because of a lack of evidence.
Gauteng police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili said the 32-year-old suspect had been interviewed and released on a warning by the police, pending further investigations.
Read more in Daily Maverick: âBoksburg gas tanker explosion leaves 10 dead, 26 injured â and temporarily shuts down OR Tambo Memorial Hospitalâ
Police had arrested the 32-year-old truck driver on Saturday evening at a private hospital where he was receiving treatment for minor injuries. He was charged with âmultiple counts of culpable homicide, negligent causing of an explosion resulting in death ⌠and malicious property damageâ.
On Wednesday, Muridili confirmed that the charges had not been dropped.
âAfter the conclusion of investigations, the docket will be taken to court for a decision,â she said. DM
Families and friends of victims of Boksburg gas tanker… (dailymaverick.co.za)
2023-01-01 at 21:11 #387817VIKING BOERModeratorI think the damage would have been much greater if the truck was in the open but luckily it was partially under the bridge as I could make out of all the reports.
This was the saddest part of 2022 ending the year on such a tragic note.
We will remember this for years to come.
R.I.P. TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO DIED IN THIS EXPLOSION AND BEST WISHES AND PRAYERS FOR ALL THE INJURED PEOPLE.2023-01-04 at 01:26 #388036Nat QuinnKeymasterIt most certainly was a terrible day for many, for an entire country I believe.
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