CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — A report into a building fire that killed 76 people in South Africa last year has concluded that city authorities should be held responsible because they were aware of serious safety issues at the rundown apartment block at least four years before the blaze.
The nighttime fire at the five-story building in downtown Johannesburg on Aug. 31 was one of South Africa's worst disasters. At least 12 children were among the dead and another 86 people were injured, with some having to leap out of windows to escape the flames.
Others said they threw small children out the windows in the hope that they would be caught by people below. Many of the victims were burned beyond recognition having become trapped in the overcrowded building and it took authorities weeks to identify bodies using DNA tests.
Retired Judge Sisi Khampepe was put in charge of the inquiry, which began in October. She delivered the first part of her report on Sunday and concluded that the City of Johannesburg, which owns the building, had shown “total disregard” for its “calamitous state.”
In the wake of the fire, hundreds of people were found to be living illegally in the building, some of them in shacks that had been erected in the corridors, the bathrooms and the basement, which was meant to be a parking garage. Emergency services said that the fire extinguishers had been taken off the walls and the main fire escape was found to be locked on the night of the fire.
The inside of the building was strewn with waste and that combined with the makeshift wooden shacks to make the blaze especially deadly, Khampepe's report found.
Yet city officials, national immigration officials and police officers had raided the building in 2019, and "found the distressing living conditions in the building that contributed to the devastation of the fire,” Khampepe told reporters after delivering her report.
She recommended that disciplinary action be taken against the chief executive officer of the Johannesburg Property Company, which oversees the city's buildings. She also said that the building should be demolished and a plaque erected as a memorial to the dozens of victims.
The tragedy revealed the extent of the decay in parts of South Africa's biggest city and economic hub, where many buildings have been “hijacked” by illegal landlords, who rent out space to people desperate for somewhere to live. The buildings are often overcrowded and safety precautions are disregarded.
There was a stunning development at the inquiry in January when a man due to testify as a resident of the building said that he had started the fire to burn the body of a man he had killed on the orders of a drug dealer.
The man who made the shocking confession was arrested and charged with 76 counts of murder and arson.
AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
FILE - Medics and emergency works at the scene of a deadly blaze in Johannesburg Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. A report into a building fire that killed 76 people in South Africa last year has concluded that city authorities should be held responsible because they were aware of serious safety issues at the rundown apartment block at least four years before the blaze. The nighttime fire at the five-story building in downtown Johannesburg on Aug. 31 was one of South Africa's worst disasters. At least 12 children were among the dead and another 86 people were injured. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File)
FILE - Medics stand by the covered bodies of victims of a deadly blaze in Johannesburg, Thursday, Aug. 31, 2023. A report into a building fire that killed 76 people in South Africa last year has concluded that city authorities should be held responsible because they were aware of serious safety issues at the rundown apartment block at least four years before the blaze. The nighttime fire at the five-story building in downtown Johannesburg on Aug. 31 was one of South Africa's worst disasters. At least 12 children were among the dead and another 86 people were injured. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay/File)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Walker Buehler pitched six sharp innings with seven strikeouts in his third start since returning from Tommy John surgery, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 4-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Saturday night.
Buehler (1-1) yielded three hits and no walks in a dominant performance to earn his first major league victory since May 24, 2022. After looking somewhat shaky and wild in his first two starts back from his second Tommy John procedure, the two-time All-Star controlled his breaking pitches against Cincinnati and rediscovered the form he has usually shown when healthy during his first six seasons with the Dodgers.
Buehler said he changed his position on the rubber since his last start, and “a lot of things clicked into place.”
“It was finally fun again,” Buehler said with a smile. “No, it’s just good to put one together. ... The (velocity) wasn't as good as it has been, not that that was intentional, but I think I was really trying to command it, and that's what happens. I think there's enough velo in there to still be pretty good. Just felt like it finally worked."
Buehler and his three relievers combined on a three-hitter, with the bullpen pitching three perfect innings.
“He's confident by nature, but I still think that when you go out there and do it, that solidifies the confidence, especially coming back from Tommy John,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
Freddie Freeman had two hits and drove in a run for the Dodgers, who have won 18 of 24 games to surge 7 1/2 games ahead of San Diego atop the NL West. Teoscar Hernández and Andy Pages also had run-scoring hits for Los Angeles.
“A healthy Walker Buehler, that's huge for us,” Freeman said. “You can't say enough about him. I feel for someone who's gone through injuries like that. It's been a long road back for him. Whatever happens down the road, so be it.”
Graham Ashcraft (3-3) yielded three hits, three walks and three runs over five innings for the Reds, who have lost two straight and 14 of 17. Cincinnati was shut out for the fourth time this season.
“They put some good swings on the ball, (but) there was only one hard-hit ball throughout the game,” Ashcraft said. “Of course, the walks killed me.”
The Reds lost despite handling Shohei Ohtani, who went 0 for 4 for only the fifth time since joining the Dodgers. Mookie Betts also got his first rest day of the season for the Dodgers, who moved Ohtani to the leadoff spot.
Ashcraft held the Dodgers hitless for the first three innings, but he walked Freeman and Hernández in the fourth before Pages delivered an RBI single. Hernández then scored on Gavin Lux's groundout.
“You give them credit," Cincinnati manager David Bell said. "The hits (Los Angeles) ended up getting were maybe not hit real hard, but at the same time, they put themselves in position to score by getting on base, grinding out at-bats and making it tough on Graham.”
Jake Fraley was gifted a one-out triple in the fifth when Dodgers left fielder Miguel Vargas inexplicably cut in front of Pages, causing both outfielders to miss a catchable ball. Buehler calmly got two more outs.
“That's kind of the stuff I play for, what we all talk about,” Buehler said. “You get to the game, and kind of going pedestrian and well, and then you get into a spot like that, and it ... gets you back going. For me, every time I can do that and be successful is such a huge thing, being out as long as I was.”
Miguel Rojas doubled and scored on Freeman's single in the fifth. Freeman then doubled and scored on Hernández's single in the eighth.
Reds outfielder Jacob Hurtubise got his first major league hit with a single in the third inning. The 26-year-old U.S. Military Academy graduate was called up Monday, becoming the first major leaguer to use a new exemption policy allowing West Point grads to defer their military service while playing professional sports.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw threw off the mound before the game in his latest step in his return from offseason shoulder surgery. He isn't expected to begin his 17th season with Los Angeles until July or August. ... RHP Bobby Miller (right shoulder) also threw a bullpen session. He hasn't pitched in a game since April 13.
UP NEXT
Los Angeles native Hunter Greene (2-2, 3.27 ERA) will make the second Dodger Stadium start of his career for Cincinnati. The Dodgers haven't announced their starter.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft throws during the first inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, Saturday, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith catches a foul ball hit by Cincinnati Reds' Jeimer Candelario during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Los Angeles, Saturday, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani reacts to a pitch during the first inning a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Los Angeles, Saturday, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Cincinnati Reds left fielder Jacob Hurtubise (26) takes the field during the second inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Los Angeles, Saturday, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Walker Buehler shows during the first inning of a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds in Los Angeles, Saturday, May 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
