Medical supplies and equipment go up in smoke at storage facility in Durban

Thousands of rand worth of medical supplies and equipment went up in flames at a storage facility belonging to Kwa-Dube Medical in Glenwood, Durban, on Thursday.

The company’s sales director Shayne Hinton said employees alerted him about a fire in their adjoining storage facility.

“I was doing my monthly reports in the main building which was unaffected. I ran down and we all tried to douse the fire ourselves using our extinguishers,” said Hinton.

“There was a police officer who also came to assist us and, in an instant, the fire trucks came,” said Hinton.

He suspected the fire could have been a result of arson as the area has become a hotbed for vagrants.

“The area has is also become notorious for muggings and break-ins.”

Hinton said they would have to wait for the fire department to make a conclusive assessment of what might have caused the blaze.

Medical equipment destroyed included fetal monitors and crash carts.

He said they had been considering relocating their business premises due to the area's decline.

“We are insured but I feel sorry for the hospitals because they are now the biggest casualty.”

TimesLIVE