Authorities are investigating the cause of a fire that broke out at a house in Malvern, south of Durban, leaving one person with minor injuries and resulting in the death of two puppies.
The blaze erupted in one of the rooms at a property on Inverleigh Road, quickly spreading through the home, which featured wooden floors and an older structure.
“By the time we arrived, the fire had already breached the roof,” said Narend Birjlal, Divisional Commander of eThekwini Fire and Emergency Services. He confirmed that four people reside at the property.
Firefighters arrived with two rescue pumpers, a water carrier, an incident command unit, and 11 personnel. It took around 15 minutes to bring the fire under control using hydrant water and the onboard supplies from their vehicles.
While damping down the scene, crews made a distressing discovery—eight puppies were found inside the home. Sadly, two had died from burn injuries, while six were rescued.
“There were no serious injuries to any of the residents,” said Birjlal. “One person sustained minor injuries and was transported to hospital by ambulance. It was not anything major.”
Fire investigators are now working to determine what sparked the blaze.