‘Sad day for democracy’: Major fire engulfs South African Parliament building - National | Globalnews.ca
''A major fire ripped through South Africa‘s Parliament complex on Sunday, gutting offices and causing some ceilings in the building that houses the national legislature to collapse.
''Jean-Pierre Smith, Cape Town's mayoral committee member for safety and security, said 36 firefighters were at the scene.
"The roof of the Old Assembly building has collapsed and is gone," Smith told reporters.
They were still fighting the fire more than eight hours later.''
The fire broke out around 3:00 a.m. UTC (0400 CET) and was on the third story of the Parliament building. Reports indicated that it started in the office space and spread towards a gym.
The nearby area, including the cathedral where Archbishop Desmond Tutu was buried on Saturday, was cordoned off.
No casualties have been reported, and it was not immediately clear if anyone was in the building when the fire started.''
The cause of the blaze is still unknown. De Lille said officials were reviewing CCTV footage to determine the cause of the fire. ''
Officials are examining CCTV footage to try to determine the cause of the fire
Parliament speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula cautioned against speculation that the fire was a deliberate attack.
"Until such a time that a report has been furnished that there was arson, we have to be careful not to make suggestions that there was an attack,'' she said.''
‘Sad day for democracy’: Major fire engulfs South African Parliament building - National | Globalnews.ca
''As firefighters struggled to tame the blaze, a dark plume of smoke and flames rose high into the air above the southern city of Cape Town.
Around 70 firefighters were still battling the fire more than seven hours after it started in the early morning, Cape Town’s Fire and Rescue Service spokesman Jermaine Carelse said. Some of them were lifted up on a crane to spray water on the blaze from above. No injuries have been reported and Parliament itself had been closed for the holidays.
Visiting the scene, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said a person was “being held and is being questioned” by police in connection with the blaze.
“The fire is currently in the National Assembly chambers,” Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Patricia de Lille told reporters as smoke billowed behind her from the roof of the historic white building with grand entrance columns. “This is a very sad day for democracy, for Parliament is the home of our democracy.”
''A major fire ripped through South Africa‘s Parliament complex on Sunday, gutting offices and causing some ceilings in the building that houses the national legislature to collapse.
''Jean-Pierre Smith, Cape Town's mayoral committee member for safety and security, said 36 firefighters were at the scene.
"The roof of the Old Assembly building has collapsed and is gone," Smith told reporters.
They were still fighting the fire more than eight hours later.''
The fire broke out around 3:00 a.m. UTC (0400 CET) and was on the third story of the Parliament building. Reports indicated that it started in the office space and spread towards a gym.
The nearby area, including the cathedral where Archbishop Desmond Tutu was buried on Saturday, was cordoned off.
No casualties have been reported, and it was not immediately clear if anyone was in the building when the fire started.''
The cause of the blaze is still unknown. De Lille said officials were reviewing CCTV footage to determine the cause of the fire. ''
Officials are examining CCTV footage to try to determine the cause of the fire
Parliament speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula cautioned against speculation that the fire was a deliberate attack.
"Until such a time that a report has been furnished that there was arson, we have to be careful not to make suggestions that there was an attack,'' she said.''
‘Sad day for democracy’: Major fire engulfs South African Parliament building - National | Globalnews.ca
''As firefighters struggled to tame the blaze, a dark plume of smoke and flames rose high into the air above the southern city of Cape Town.
Around 70 firefighters were still battling the fire more than seven hours after it started in the early morning, Cape Town’s Fire and Rescue Service spokesman Jermaine Carelse said. Some of them were lifted up on a crane to spray water on the blaze from above. No injuries have been reported and Parliament itself had been closed for the holidays.
Visiting the scene, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said a person was “being held and is being questioned” by police in connection with the blaze.
“The fire is currently in the National Assembly chambers,” Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure Patricia de Lille told reporters as smoke billowed behind her from the roof of the historic white building with grand entrance columns. “This is a very sad day for democracy, for Parliament is the home of our democracy.”