South African parliament hears independent assessment on January fire

CAPE TOWN, April 2 — South African Parliament on Friday said its committee on financial management was updated its independent assessment of damage to Parliament buildings due to January’s fire.
According to the assessment following the fires starting on Jan. 2, the fire in the building of the National Assembly, the lower house, caused significant damage to the central structural elements from the 2nd floor to the 6th floor, however, it is “not vulnerable to collapse.”
Basement floors are flooded, and investigators will inspect them once water is extracted to issue a final report, which will provide a detailed assessment to determine the extent of the damage for full restoration of the building, including providing a cost and time estimate for such works, the parliament in a statement.
Members of the parliament were also told urgent work is required to make parts of the Old Assembly safe and that provide a temporary roof to prevent rain from causing damage to lower floors.
South Africa has three capitals, including Cape Town which hosts the parliament. The fire that lasted more than 70 hours severely damaged the building of the National Assembly and completely burned down its chamber. It also caused extensive damage to the century-old Old Assembly building that houses the National Council of Provinces, the upper house.
A 49-year-old Cape Town man Zandile Christmas Mafe, who is suspected of setting fire to Parliament, was arrested on Jan. 2 and had appeared in court. His case was postponed to May 12 due to delays in the investigation caused by “50 tons of water” in the basement which needs to be cleared.  (Xinhua)