CNN
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The death toll from a raging fire in a five-story building in central Johannesburg has risen to 63, according to the city’s emergency services.
The number of people injured stands at 43, said spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi.
Emergency services and firefighters are working to put out the blaze, public broadcaster SABC reported.
Videos from the scene show huge orange flames engulfing the lower floor of a building, and scores of people who appear to have fled outside.
In a series of tweets shared on X, formerly known as Twitter, emergency services spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said multiple people were being treated and some had been transported to health care facilities.
The cause of the fire is not yet known, according to SABC.
Johannesburg’s emergency services said the fire was reported at around 1:30 a.m. local time Thursday.
“At this stage the cause of the fire incident is still a subject of investigations,” the statement read. “Officials from City of Johannesburg Disaster Management have been activated to start facilitating relief for affected families,” it added.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
