Firefighters return home from George structure collapse incident

On Monday, the 6th of May, the world heard the devastating news: a 4 story structure, currently under construction, had collapsed in George. Over 80 construction workers on site at the time, were burried under the rubble.

with Cape Town often been hailed as having the best Fire and Rescue service in South Africa, since the Democratic Alliance took over, the past 15 years we have systematically rebuilt the service, but have continuously invested in bolstering the service again.

With undoubtedly the best fleet of specialized vehicles, equipped with the very best and latest technology, and filled with dedicated rescue personnel with highly sought after skills and qualifications, we knew we had to assist.

Within an hour of the incident having occurred, preparations were being made and that afternoon, a Rescue Technician crew left Cape Town to respond over 400km away.

Both trucks were specialized for handling incidents of structure collapse. One truck fitted with a crane, another filled with specialized equipment, including an array of cutting machinery and electronic equipment designed to find trapped victims, the team arrived in George that evening and immediately got to work.

For 4 days straight, our City of Cape Town Rescue Technicians worked around the clock, helping locate and rescue victims burried below the concrete.

On Friday the 10th of May, our team returned to Cape Town, to the Goodwood fire station. We stood waiting, ready to welcome them back home.

This video covers their return, hearing their experiences from the rescue mission, in their own words.