House of Chief Mashau destroyed in fire

Thovhele Vho-Thavhayamipfa Mashau, along with members of the Mashau Thondoni family, were left homeless after their seven-bedroom house burnt to ashes early on Sunday morning.

Mashau, who was still in shock when interviewed on Tuesday, said that his family should consider themselves lucky for escaping the flames with no burn wounds. The cause of the fire is still unknown. Mashau said he only became aware of the situation when he heard noises and the breaking of glass.

“I heard noises coming from another room. I rushed there and found that there was a lot of smoke and the house was on fire,” he said. “We tried to extinguish the fire while at the same time trying to call the police and firefighters, but the fire was very fierce,” he said. Mashau said that he remembered shouting for help in the hope that more people could come to assist and perhaps salvage some of their belongings. “But we were too late, and almost everything in the house was destroyed,” he said.

People from the village gathered at the homestead but could do nothing. When the firefighters arrived at the scene, they doused the flames.

Chief  Mashau said that he suspected the cause of the fire to have been an electrical fault. He estimates the damage at approximately R500 000. The fire also seriously damaged the roof and the walls of all seven rooms.

A plea was made to community members and the business sector to assist the family with food, clothes, school uniforms and books. “The Mashau family wants to repair the house, but it seems as if it will be difficult,” said a community member, Mr Zwamune Maroge. He said that it was sad that the family had to lose all their prized possessions in these trying economic times and with no one working in the family. “It will be very hard for them, as they had accumulated their things over many years and it will be difficult for them to buy the goods again. They will need community support.”

The Makhado Municipality’s disaster management team also visited the family to assess the damage. When contacted for comment, the spokesperson for the Makhado Municipality, Mr Louis Bobodi, indicated that, through the disaster management unit, the municipality would release a report.

Date:20 February 2015

By: Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.

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