ABOUT 200 PANIC AS RUCHI WHOLESALE ON FIRE

MATSAPHA – There was panic at Ruchi Power Save Cash and Carry as the wholesale store caught fire that caused damages worth about E5 million.
The incident happened yesterday at about 9:45am. There were about 200 people inside the store.

Ruchi Power Save Cash and Carry is a popular wholesale that is situated near Mobeni flats in Matsapha towards the Matsapha Industrial Sites.
Information gathered from some eyewitnesses was that the wholesale was operating as normal when those who were inside heard a voice shouting ‘fire! fire!’. The directors of the store responded to the shouting voices by running towards it and they were shocked to find the other room filled with clouds of smoke.

“They ordered the about 200 customers and staff members out of the wholesale while others called the Fire and Emergency Services personnel. Everyone left what he/she was doing and dashed out of the store. By then the smoke had filled the entire wholesale because of the intensity of the fire,” one of the witnesses said.

The man who is said to have raised the alarm after witnessing the fire when it started, Sibusiso Tsela said he was working in the refrigeration room when he saw a spark of fire on top of the meat refrigerator.
He said the spark quickly developed into a big fire and that was when he shouted ‘fire!’ to alert the others.

“There are two big refrigerators, one for meat and the other for drinks. While I was working, I heard a noise similar to sparking electric cables, and when I raised my eyes I saw a line of fire on top of the meat refrigerator and within a twinkle of an eye the line of fire was a big flame,” he said.

Alarm

Tsela said the fire spread so fast such that before he could raise an alarm, it was already on the shelves with sugar and mealie-meal among other items. He said when the supervisors reacted, the entire wholesale was filled with clouds of smoke as the fire was running up the ceiling.
He said there were over 200 people inside by then and they included the about 50 staff members and the rest were customers.
It was gathered that out of the about 200 people who in the wholesale, no one was injured as they were got out of the store immediately after being ordered by the store supervisors.

Meanwhile, Ruchi Power Save Cash and Cary Director Hasmukh Patel said the damage that was caused by the fire was worth about E5m. He said they suspect that the fire was caused by electric faults.
He said the store was insured and the insurance company visited the wholesale later on the day to assess the damages.

Matsapha Fire Station Commander Charles Mhlanga confirmed that there were no casualties during the incident. He said they managed to respond quickly to the call because their station was close to the store.
“We also brought our best machines thus we were able to fight the fire before it reduced everything inside the wholesale into ashes. The way the fire was strong, it could have burnt down the building if they did not respond immediately or if they delayed,” Mhlanga said.

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