Witness tells of ‘haunting’ Usindiso fire
A survivor of the Joburg CBD fire that claimed over 70 lives says he is still haunted by the events of that night.
Sihle Dube, a former resident of the hijacked Usindiso Building, took the stand in the trial of alleged arsonist, Sthembiso Mdlalose, in the High Court sitting in Palm Ridge on Friday.
Mdlalose was arrested in January 2024 after he confessed to starting the deadly blaze at the Usindiso Inquiry, which was shared by retired judge Sisi Khampepe.
READ MORE: Usindiso fire: One year later, little justice for survivors
Mdlalose cut a sad figure in the dock, staring blankly at Judge Cassim Moosa as proceedings got underway
The accused’s father was seated in the gallery just a few rows behind him.
In his admissions, Mdlalose said he had given one “KB” drugs worth R300 to sell for a Tanzanian drug lord known only as ‘Master’.”
He claims that when KB failed to return with the expected profit, he assaulted him several times in a room dubbed the “slaghuis” [slaughterhouse] on the ground floor, while in a fit of rage.
“There was a kettle extension cord which I used to strangle him. I wasn't intending to kill him, just to strangle him. It so happened that he stopped breathing whilst I was strangling him. As I was in a state of confusion and uncertainty, I realised he had passed on.”
Mdlalose says he then rushed to a filling station across the road and bought petrol, which he used to douse the deceased’s body before setting him alight.
“I was then back at my senses, and I realised the fire was now uncontrollable and the occupants still inside were screaming. I tried to assist some of the people still inside.”
Earlier this week, Judge Cassim Moosa ruled that the confession that Mdlalose made after he tried to recant on his admissions, prompting a trial within a trial.
After giving his testimony, Dube recalled how he was suddenly woken by the overbearing smell of smoke.
“Then I entered the passage and I could feel that there was something on the floor, maybe it was the bodies. I went back to the room because I could see that if I continued in this thick smoke, which had a very bad smell, I couldn’t even breathe. So, I went back into the room and used the window to jump out.”
Dube suffered four fractured ribs and another injury to his back.
Originally from KwaZulu-Natal, he says he is sometimes triggered by the sight and smell of fires.
“There in Joburg, you find these ‘nyaopes’, they always burn something. I remember one day I was asleep at night, and they were burning something down the road. That smoke came in the direction of my flat – I jumped on the bed thinking now there’s fire again.”
Dube says he’s received little assistance from the government and has had to find his way back to normalcy after the traumatic event.
Meanwhile, the matter is expected to resume on Tuesday with new witnesses expected to take the stand.
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