This is the second time a public building has caught fire in the small town of Komani (formerly Queenstown). A year ago residents stood by helplessly as they watched their town hall burn to the ground.
Now a similar incident has once again rocked the small town — the parcel section of the Komani Post Office was completely destroyed on Saturday, leaving the state-owned entity with estimated damage of R500,000.
South African Post Office business rescue practitioner Louise Brugman confirmed the fire.
“The damage is on the parcel and mail side. No injuries were sustained and staff assisted to clean up the branch, but the branch is wet, so it is not open,” she said.
Brugman added that Sassa beneficiaries and other post bank customers would not be impacted as the finance side of the post office was not affected by the fire.
“Residents will have to use the post office in Mlungisi Township for other services, which is 15 km away, for the time being,” she said.
Chris Hani municipal spokesperson Bulelwa Ganyaza said emergency services managed to stop the fire. “Chris Hani Fire Services and Komani Fire Volunteers successfully managed to stop the blaze from spreading to the entire structure, saving the building,” Ganyaza said.
Komani police spokesperson Captain Namhla Mdleleni confirmed that foul play was suspected.
“Based on evidence found on the scene, we believe it was a case of arson. However, no additional information is available at this stage,” he said.