News24 reports that the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) continues to use corrugated iron sheet structures on prison grounds as barracks for employees at Mthatha prison.

This is despite unions having flagged safety fears for years and the Department of Public Works (DPW) saying the structures should be demolished. In the early hours of Sunday morning, a prison warder was trapped and killed in a blaze that engulfed a section of about a dozen of the metal shacks which had no fire extinguishers or emergency exits. The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) expressed anger over the loss of life of the 27-year-old man. In 2010, the DPW recommended that the DCS should demolishes the inadequate structures. However, according to Popcru, the department ignored several calls for it to eradicate the shacks and build proper accommodation for prison staff. The DCS also has brick-and-mortar living quarters for employees, but these too are in poor condition. Prison officials claimed that despite paying monthly rent, the department hadn't carried out maintenance on the buildings in decades. "Inmates live in far better conditions inside the cells," one official said. Popcru’s Xolani Prusente slammed the department for subjecting employees to appalling conditions. Without giving details, DCS spokesperson Singabakho Nxumalo said there was a planned project to construct housing facilities for officials. A police spokesperson confirmed that an inquest docket had been opened following the blaze and said the circumstances surrounding the incident were under investigation.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Malibongwe Dayimani at News24 (subscriber access only)

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