Joburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) is set to beef up the number of its fire engines to better respond to the risk of fires. .
The EMS said its fire brigade forms part of the city’s first responders group and a shortage of fire engines could put residents’ lives at risk.
Joburg EMS, which copes with about 250,000 calls a year, has 30 fire stations servicing the metro’s seven regions. The stations are within a 3km-5km radius of one another, allowing them to support each other as and when the need arises.
The shortage of fire trucks in Joburg was brought into sharp focus after a fire ripped through an informal settlement in Booysens on Monday, leaving hundreds of families destitute in its wake.
Solomon Maila, the DA’s shadow MMC for public safety, said: “We can confirm that there is indeed a dire shortage of fire engines to cover the 6-million residents and the more than 300 informal settlements in the City of Johannesburg.
“That’s why the DA has literally been sitting on the proverbial neck of this ANC/EFF/PA coalition to get them to expedite the procurement of new fire engines. We are pleased that an award was made in November 2024 for the procurement of 15 fire engines over the next two financial years.”
Maila said the DA had been assured that “two new fire engines will be delivered before the end of June 2025 as part of the new contract. Ideally, we should have at least 10 fire trucks for each of the city’s seven service delivery regions. The DA will not rest until that milestone is achieved.”
When quizzed about operational matters, Joburg EMS spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi told Business Day: “The situation is not that bad. We have about 30 fire stations, ideally we need about 30 fire engines, one for each station, but we currently have 15 operational fire engines.”
Mulaudzi, however, stressed there were other vehicles used during operations. “We are strategically placed in high-risk areas, such as the inner city and in informal areas and in those where we know that according to our statistics we always receive the most calls,” he said.
Without elaborating, Mulaudzi said a process was currently under way to add additional fleet capacity. “We are hopeful we are going to get those vehicles soon to assist us to alleviate the burden we have now,” he said.
In 2021, the courts declared the city’s multimillion-rand tender initiated in 2015 to procure 92 fire engines illegal and unconstitutional. The council had set aside about R200m for the tender, also known as the red fleet contract.
Nico Kroese, a manager in the research department of the SA Weather Service, said prevailing meteorological conditions would enhance the possibility of more fires.
He said most fires that started in informal settlements were “man-made” but revealed that he was part of efforts to develop a new fire warning system for SA.
“Over the past week or so, we have had some very warm and dry weather conditions, which are conducive for fires to break out,” he said.
According to Weather25.com, Joburg temperatures are set to average from 30-32°C from January 29 to February 5.
Joburg metro spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane said: “City of Johannesburg Emergency Management Services has been allocated a budget of R300m in the multiyear budget for the procurement of fire engines. For the current fiscal EMS is spending R150m for the first batch of vehicles, which should be received by June 2025. The other R150m will be utilised in the next financial year to order the last batch of vehicles.
“Due to the nature of the environment, EMS is not in a position to mention the service provider until the vehicles are received. The SLA [service level agreement] has already been signed so everything is at an advanced stage. Following the mid-year budget adjustments EMS will be receiving an additional R80m which will take the budget to R380m.”
Update: January 29 2025
This story has been updated with comment from Joburg metro's spokesperson.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.