Two years after the devastating Usindiso building fire in Johannesburg’s Marshalltown district killed 76 people, survivors remain homeless, trapped in poverty, and living in unsafe conditions despite government promises to address South Africa’s deep housing crisis.
Once an office block from the 1950s, the Usindiso building had been abandoned before being taken over by hundreds of desperate families. On that late August night in 2023, flames ripped through the five-storey structure, exposing the grim realities of Johannesburg’s hijacked buildings and the growing urban housing crisis.
Survivor Vusi Tshabalala recalls escaping the blaze by wrapping himself in wet blankets and running through the smoke with his girlfriend and brother. “Others got injured because they fell and were trampled. I thank God we came out alive,” he says. But today, Tshabalala lives in a shack just meters from the charred ruins of the building, in an informal settlement known as Emaxhoseni. Despite flooding, filth, and poor drainage, he says he returned because at least he can find work nearby, something relocation sites failed to provide.
Other survivors were moved to a temporary camp in Denver, east of Johannesburg, where 800 people live in corrugated iron shelters with only a handful of toilets and taps. But the camp is plagued by violence. Thobeka Biyela, a 29-year-old volunteer police worker, was shot in her sleep earlier this year during a fight outside the camp. The bullet remains lodged in her hip. “Sometimes when I see the holes in the wall, I cry. I never expected this in my life,” she says, adding that she sent her young daughter to live with her grandmother for safety.
Residents say at least three people have been killed at the Denver camp since its establishment. “This place is not safe. They promised us gates, but anyone can just walk in,” Biyela laments.
Lawyers and rights groups argue that the government has failed survivors by not providing permanent housing. South Africa’s national housing policy requires permanent solutions for disaster victims, but affordable options are scarce. Many abandoned city buildings could be converted into homes, yet private developers demand rents far beyond what the poor can afford.
President Cyril Ramaphosa called the Usindiso fire a “wake-up call” when he visited the site, vowing to address inner-city housing and dangerous hijacked buildings. With Johannesburg set to host the G20 Summit in November, authorities pledged to clean up Marshalltown and restore investor confidence. But activists warn the short-term facelift may not solve systemic inequality.
Nomzamo Zondo, executive director of the Socio-Economic Rights Institute (SERI), stresses that unless permanent, affordable housing is prioritized, tragedies like Usindiso could happen again. “Our hope is that the presidency’s commitment will outlive the G20 and ensure dignified housing for the poor,” she says.
For now, survivors like Tshabalala remain in limbo, staring at the ruins of the building that changed their lives forever. “If people are still living like this, I don’t see any change,” he sighs.
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