South African firefighters are going back inside the Johannesburg building that caught fire on Thursday to search for any more bodies.
The fire happened in a crowded and unsafe five-story building. 74 people, including 12 children, died in the fire.
The fire department wants to make sure that nobody has been forgotten or left alone.
We don’t know what caused the fire yet, but forensic investigators are looking at the burned building to find clues.
People whose family members might have died in the fire are being requested to go to the mortuary and help identify the bodies.
President Cyril Ramaphosa visited the area in central Johannesburg on Thursday evening. He said that the tragedy was a warning for us to start dealing with the issue of housing in the inner city.
The building used to be a safe place for women and children who were mistreated, but when the rental agreement ended, it was taken over without permission, as explained by President Ramaphosa to the press.
Several homes near the fire location have been declared unsuitable for habitation.
However, these old buildings are left behind by their owners or the city authorities. They are occupied by families who pay rent to criminal gangs that control them.
Some of the people who use the buildings are undocumented migrants, mainly from other African countries.
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Johannesburg fire: New victim search underway in South Africa
