South Africa, Johannesburg – With heavy rain and hail lashing southern parts of Gauteng, taxi passengers, among others, escaped serious injury on Friday afternoon after the roof of a service station collapsed on three vehicles in Vereeniging.
The incident occurred at about 1.50 pm off Seeiso Road in Sharpville, said ER24 spokesperson Russel Meiring in a statement. Luckily, only two men in their twenties sustained minor injuries.
’’At approximately 13h50, ER24 paramedics arrived on the scene to find that a roof of a service station had collapsed on a small bus, a taxi, and a light motor vehicle. The drivers and passengers had taken refuge in the nearby shop,’’ Meiring said.
’’Medics assessed the patients and found that two men, believed to be in their twenties, had sustained only minor injuries. Fortunately, no serious injuries or fatalities were found.
’’The patients were treated and thereafter transported to Kopanong Provincial Hospital for further care.
Fortunate escape from serious injury after roof collapse at a filling station in Vereeniging https://t.co/VVyHp1qkFo #ArriveAlive #RoofCollapse @_ArriveAlive pic.twitter.com/s7ziurT6CB
— Construction Safety (@ConstructionSfy) November 20, 2020
’’It is believed that the heavy rains and hail played a contributing factor in the cause of the collapse. Local authorities were on the scene for further investigations.“
Bad Weather Gauteng!! @tWeatherSA @Abramjee pic.twitter.com/rNrVxZX8na
— Lebza Ledwaba (@Chezkop_Ledwaba) November 20, 2020
The weather might persist throughout the rest of the weekend.
North West, Free State, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, and KwaZulu-Natal are also likely to experience thundershowers, the SAWS said.
It also cautioned that the thundershowers could bring the possibility of localised flooding in low-lying areas and the risk of damage to cars on the roads as well as critical infrastructure.
IOL
