Site of Sandton bridge collapse cleansed
13 November 2015
Traffic came to a standstill on the M1-Grayston Drive in Sandton today (Friday November 13) when members of the City of Johannesburg’s Mayoral Committee, traditional healers and religious leaders conducted an interdenominational cleansing ceremony at the site of the tragic accident that claimed two lives and left 19 others injured a month ago.
Conducted in silence and on bended knees, the cleansing ceremony saw healers and religious leaders pray and perform cleansing rituals on the site where scaffolding supporting the construction of a pedestrian bridge between Alexandra and Sandton collapsed over the M1 on 14 October 2015.
“Today we are gathered as compassionate citizens to cleanse the accident site and to commemorate the memory of the deceased. The City would like to once more extend its appreciation and thanks to all the men and women who were part of the rescue operation on that fateful day. These include the Johannesburg Emergency Management Services, doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers who received patients at the various hospitals, the JMPD, City officials and public transport operators who came forward and offered free services on the subsequent day,” said acting Executive Mayor Councillor Sello Lemao.
Councillor Lemao, who is MMC for Public Safety, said that in a bid to determine the cause of the accident, in addition to the statutory Department of Labour investigation expected to be concluded within six months, the City had launched an independent forensic probe, the results of which would be communicated in due course.
“The Department of Transport in the City has, together with the Johannesburg Roads Agency (JRA), also appointed structural engineers to conduct an independent investigation to look into the causes of the accident and remedial steps that need to be taken. We remain committed to continuing with the construction of the bridge that will give thousands of people who travel between Alexandra, Marlboro, Wynberg and Sandton each day the dignity they deserve,” MMC Lemao said.
The Johannesburg Development Agency (JDA) and construction company Murray & Roberts have asked the Department of Labour for permission to remove the remnants of the collapsed temporary works to a safe and secure location offsite.
Cllr Lemao said the remnants could be used by investigators during their probe. That was why it was important to keep them safe and secured, he said.
“The City will only allow full construction of the bridge to resume when, firstly, both the JDA and the contractor have demonstrated that they have put in place all possible risk mitigation measures to avoid a reoccurrence of this tragic accident and, secondly, after the Department of Labour has approved the design and construction methodology going forward,” said MMC Lemao.
JDA Chief Executive Thanduxolo Mendrew said the agency had committed itself to conducting frequent occupational health and safety (OHS) inspections and “will ensure that there is a full time specialist occupational health and safety practitioner on site to ensure that all OHS requirements are adhered to by the contractor.”
MMC Lemao, JMPD Chaplain Dr Phinda Ngwenya, MMC for Transport Cllr Christine Walters, MMC for Development Planning Councillor Roslynn Greeff and MMC for Corporate and Shared Services Councillor Mally Mokoena wished all the injured speedy recovery.