Winds reignite fire at South Africa’s Parliament

SOUTH AFRICA: A fire engulfing South Africa’s Parliament continued to rage as night fell on Cape Town on Monday, after strong winds reignited the blaze that firefighters had declared under control just hours earlier.

A 49-year-old man has been charged over starting the inferno which broke out early Sunday and has devastated the parliament complex, collapsing the roof of the National Assembly and threatening historic treasures.

After a struggle that stretched into Sunday night, the fire was believed to have been brought under control, with exhausted firefighters leaving the site to the cheers of onlookers and journalists.

But temperatures in the smouldering houses of parliament were still around 100 degrees Celsius (210 degrees Fahrenheit), rescue workers warned.

Then the wind picked up and a thick column of smoke sparked fresh fears — within minutes flames were again pouring out of the windows and roof of the building.

As night fell on Monday, firefighter spokesman Jermaine Carelse said “who knows” how much longer it would now take to bring the fire under control.

The day before, the fire tore through the wooden room where MPs normally sit. Carelse said such was the devastation that a Parliamentary session would not be held there for a long time. Completed in 1884, the historic section is where Parliament keeps treasures including around 4,000 heritage and artworks, some dating back to the 17th century.

– THE BANGKOK POST