THE gas explosion that ripped through Lilian Ngoyi Street, formally known as Bree Street, just seven days ago could result in the declaration of a state of disaster.
This is according to City manager Floyd Brink, who spoke on Wednesday, 26 July, as he led the technical media briefing on the progress of the restoration efforts in the Inner City of Johannesburg.
Brink said they have already begun compiling a report to the Provincial Disaster Management Centre (PDMC) to commence with the legislative processes to declare the explosion a local state of disaster.
This process, according to Brink, could take about seven days.
“The declaration of the disaster is critical in order for us to assess the impact of the explosion on our infrastructure and the cost for reconstruction that must take place.
“We have mandated the disaster management centre to commence with the processes and to finalise the report for submission to the PDMC within the next seven days,” he said.
On Wednesday, 19 July, an underground explosion struck the Joburg CBD, causing panic, splitting a busy street open and leaving many cars damaged‚ with some blown off the road by the force of the blast.
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One person died from the explosion while injuring more than 40 people. At the same time, the city was also plunged into darkness, and several water systems were disrupted.
Brink confirmed that electricity, water and sewerage services have since been restored to residents living at Lillian Ngoyi Street and surrounding areas.
To date, the cause of the said terror is still uncertain. However, Brink did confirm that this was indeed a gas explosion.
“We are clear that this was a gas explosion, but the source is still difficult to confirm as we are awaiting results from the laboratory coupled with ongoing investigations.
“There are different forensic investigators that have moved into the site, including those for the Egoli Gas and even from our side,” he said.
While investigations to determine what could have caused the explosion to continue, Brink also said it would take time to determine the costs of repairs and reconstructions until they are certain what was happening underground.
