This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.GroundUp reports that after a fire destroyed the incinerator room at the Dutywa Community Health Centre, Eastern Cape MEC for Health Ntandokazi Capa admitted that the centre does not have a valid fire compliance certificate.
On Saturday, a veld fire reached the Dutywa health facility, resulting in the incinerator room catching fire. However, further damage to the centre was prevented, and it is still operating. In another incident on the same day, 10 prefabricated homes used by staff at Holy Cross Hospital in Flagstaff also burnt down in a veld fire. While GroundUp was shown a valid certificate for Fire Equipment Compliance for the Holy Cross Hospital, Capa acknowledged that the Dutwya centre did not have valid fire certificate. The Dutywa facility’s incinerator room is located near the main buildings which are used to store flammable containers. Health workers and patients at the centre reported how they “went out of their way” to douse the fire, fearing it would reach the nearby fuel tank. Everything inside the incinerator room was charred and melted. SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) Gqeberha leader, Mzikazi Nkatha said compliance had always “been a problem” with the department. He added: “They continue to attribute this to budget cuts implemented by the national government, but they just don’t comply with the law. What would have happened had the fuel tank and generator caught fire?”
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Joseph Chirume at GroundUp
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