The Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital will be operating as normal on Friday, the Gauteng provincial government said.
The roof in the hospital’s foyer collapsed at roughly 14:40 on Thursday afternoon, injuring at least six people.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura and health MEC Gwen Ramokgopa attended a meeting at the hospital just after 21:00 where it was confirmed that the hospital will remain open.
“Alternative access points to hospital will be made available [and] we’re pleading with [the] public to bear with us,” Ramokgopa said on social media.
Johannesburg EMS spokesperson Nana Radebe told News24 that scaffolding is believed to have given way causing the roof to collapse.
Three fire trucks and emergency services were deployed to the scene and 30 emergency personnel searched through rubble to find people injured.
The provincial government confirmed that six people suffered minor to major injuries and were taken to nearby hospitals for medical attention.
No casualties were reported.
Contractor blamed
Co-operative governance MEC Jacob Mamabolo, who is responsible for infrastructure, blamed the roof’s collapse on shoddy workmanship by contractors waterproofing the roof.
Mamabolo said the contractor removed concrete stones and placed them on a thin roof that could not handle the weight, resulting in the roof’s collapse.
DA provincial spokesperson on health Jack Bloom sent out a statement in 2016 in which he expressed concern over the structural integrity of the building.
He told News24 on Thursday that he was exceptionally concerned about the stability of the roof after the recent rains.
“This could have been avoided,” Bloom said.
