IN PICS | Firefighters battle Durban factory blaze

Firefighters in Durban are battling a raging blaze which broke out on the fourth floor of a textile and screen printing factory on Felix Dlamini Road (formerly Brickfield Road) on Monday.

Members of eThekwini Fire and Emergency Services attempted to control the flames which have gutted the multistorey building.

Kyle van Reenen of Emer-G-Med said no injuries were immediately reported.

KZN Emergency Medical Services spokesperson Robert Mckenzie said the road was  closed off to allow emergency services to attend to the scene. 

Muhammed Khan, 21, a resident who stays opposite the building on fire said he awoke to screams and the sounds of explosions.

“I just went to sleep after prayer. I woke up to a lot of screaming at about 9am. They are still trying to contain the fire and have blocked off both ends of the road.”

He said the main concern was two transformers based on the ground floor of the building. 

According to Khan, the transformers supply electricity to the greater Overport area. 

“They are mounted transformers and they cannot be moved. We are concerned about that — if the fire spreads to there, then we're looking at a blackout in a large part of Overport.” 

A lot of people had gathered along the roadside to see what was going on, he said.

“Just outside my flat there's probably about 150 people right now. It's sad because this is one of the local businesses in the area.”

The exact cause of the fire is unknown at this stage.

TimesLIVE