MEDIA STATEMENT

For Immediate
Release
15 April
2016

NEDBANK MALL FIRE INCIDENT

On the 16th of May 2015 at about 19H44, there was a structural fire incident reported in the
inner city Nedbank building, Albertina Sisulu Street, City Centre.
On arrival, the first arriving crew found dark smoke coming out from the parking basement of
Nedbank Mall at Albertina Sisulu. During the deployment of the crews, a BA team led by the
Incident Commander became fragmented, with individual members becoming disorientated
and lost. The Incident Commander managed to find his way out of the building while the two
colleagues unfortunately lost their lives.
While we had conveyed our condolences previously, we would also like to take this opportunity
to again send our heartfelt condolences to the families and the broader EMS family.
At the time of the incident, allegations of equipment shortage and unavailability of required
resources to conduct active firefighting emerged in the media space from different media
houses. This prompted the city to launch a series of parallel investigations in addition to normal
ones.
The city instituted both Internal and external investigations by the EMS Occupational Health
and Safety Act (OHSA), EMS Forensic fire investigation unit and Group Corporate and Shared
Services OHSA unit. Fire protection association (FPA) and the department of labour
conducted external investigations on the matter. All the internal investigations have been
concluded with recommendations, while FPA has concluded all its external investigations with
its recommendations. The department of labour has not issued a report on this matter to date.

2.Recommendations from all the reports

2.1 EMS OHSA Report
The following are the findings from the EMS OHS Report
.Failure to implement Incident Command System

.Insubordination
.Lack of communication on the fire ground
.Failure to implement Breathing Apparatus procedures
.Personal Alert Safety System (P.A.S.S) devices were not activated
.Positive Pressure Ventilation (PPV) fan inside the building was stopped
.No safety officer appointed on scene

2.2 EMS Forensic Investigation report

The EMS Forensic Investigation Report made the following findings:

.Incorrect dispatching of specialised vehicle from Northview

.No voice logging of radio communications within Command Centre
.The sprinkler system control valve was shut off.
.Mechanical ventilation of the building did not activate
.Live wire exposed
.Transformer was located in the lower basement of the building

2.3 FPA Report recommendations

The FPA Report which is done by independent, specialised investigators made the
following findings:

.There was no Incident Commander and this created some challenges

.Fire department must provide refresher training that include standard operating procedures
that address basement fires, survival techniques and ventilation.
.Ensure Self Contained Breathing Apparatus Procedures are established and updated prior to
crews making entry.
.Ensure that Standard Operating Procedures are revised and Personal Alert Safety Systems
(PASS) are used properly.
.Review and Implementation of radio protocol at incidents
.Commissioned officers at all incidents
.Thermal Imaging Cameras (TICs) were not used initially but were used later

Dept. of labour report

The department will advise on when it will be released.

3. Action plan to remedy gaps and implement recommendations from all reports

Breathing Apparatus and PASS device not activated

Corrective action: Refresher training is being done on a continual basis.

.Incident Management
Corrective action: Re-training of all officers in Incident Management Systems in progress,
this includes Fire Fighters who are doing re-fresher fire-fighting training
.Crews not following instructions
Corrective action: Parades are conducted daily to check compliance to council policies.
Training academy has already developed a training program which is introducing the current
fire-fighters and newly appointed fire fighters to Command and Control environment.

.Ventilation inside the building was stopped

Corrective action: During refresher training ventilation module is covered in detail. This
includes in service training
.Lack of communication on the fire ground
Corrective action: Refresher training and Incident Command Training have addressed
this.

Training and Development

.A centralised accredited training academy exists within EMS, The education and training
conducted by EMS academy is in line with the organizational goals and aspirations.
Employees of the City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services receives learning
that is linked to their individual goals and aspirations. The department is committed to continual
development of Fire Fighters.
.During the 2014/2015 financial year a skills audit was conducted to investigate the existing
gaps within the organization and the following specialised training was conducted
.80 Fire Fighters received specialised training on SCBA this training include but not limited to
Donning and Doffing of SCBA, entering confined space wearing SCBA, operation of PASS
device, Tally and Accountability systems.

.80 Fire Fighters received Specialised High Rise building this training includes knowledge of
fire protection installations, this fire fighters are able to protect themselves from injuries while
rescuing other members of communities.
.40 Fire Fighters received training on Fire Fighter Two this training includes advanced training
on fire fighting operations, knowledge and skills required to Operate Personal Protective
Equipment including a greater extent the use of Self Contained Breathing Apparatus.
.30 Fire Fighters received training on Hazmat Operations this training includes knowledge of
hazardous materials, characteristics of hazardous materials, decontamination, surveying the
incident and Incident Command.
.30 Fire Fighters received training on Fire Service Instructor Course NFPA 1041 this training
is designed for fire fighters interested in the challenges of professional instruction, it assist
them to be able to develop fire safety educational materials, classroom presentation and
management.

The allegations of lack of equipment during the incident could not be verified or
evidence found to substantiate the claims by all the investigators. This proves that
the city had done what it was supposed to do to ensure safety of our personnel.

We want to reassure the residents of the city that EMS management is committed to making
sure that effective emergency services is provided effectively on a day to day basis without
any disruptions. As a department, we care not only about the employees, but also about our
response rate.
Please also note we have re-inforced our personnel with 172 new Fire Fighter EMTs and
were employed from February. Another 136 female Fire Fighters are currently on induction
and this will also help with the transformation of the EMS.

ENDS
By:
Robert Mulaudzi
Media Liaison Officer
Emergency Management Services
City of Johannesburg
South Africa
Landline:
+27 (0) 11 222 8056
Mobile:
+27 (0) 83 319 9036
robertmul@joburg.org.za