1 hospitalised, hundreds evacuated after chemical factory fire in Germiston
Hundreds of workers were evacuated, surrounding streets closed and nearby factories forced to halt operations after volatile chemicals ignited during offloading.
An adult male has been hospitalised with second-degree burns following a massive structural fire at the Rolfes Chemical factory in Germiston South on Thursday, February 19.
City of Ekurhuleni DEMS spokesperson William Ntladi confirmed that hundreds of workers from neighbouring companies were evacuated after the blaze erupted around midday.
“Hundreds of workers in the neighbouring companies had to be evacuated after a massive structural fire involving volatile and flammable chemicals erupted in one of the factories in Germiston South midday today,” said Ntladi.
He added that manufacturing operations in surrounding businesses were temporarily halted for safety reasons as “multiple heavy explosions were heard” from the factory.
“One adult male is confirmed hospitalised after sustaining lower body second degree burns,” he said.
Multiple fire stations from the City of Ekurhuleni responded to the scene.