The Khamphepe inquiry commission got to know that the housing crisis in South Africa was the main reason for the disaster, and thus, the Khampepe Commission reached the conclusion that it was extreme poverty that led to the five-story building illegal occupation in Marshalltown and not building hijacking.
The fire was a nightmare that took place at around 1:30 a.m. on August 31, 2023. In this catastrophe, 76 people died, and 88 people were injured, making it one of the deadliest fires in the country. Besides, twelve children were among the deceased, and some of the bodies were unidentified.
The Justice Sisi Khampepe commission has discovered that the City of Johannesburg and the Johannesburg Property Company are collectively responsible for the fire that caused the death of 76 people.
The commission made the following recommendations: a) demolition of the building that had been occupied illegally from 2019, b) compensation of the families of the victims, and c) facilitating the authorities to manage over 188 abandoned properties in the downtown area so that no more unauthorized entries take place.
Regarding the fire, the police charged Lawrence Mdlalose, 30, with 76 counts of murder, one count of arson, and 12 counts of attempted murder.
The fire was, however, two years ago, and it is worth noting that a large number of the survivors are still living in temporary accommodation, including tents.
The commission has urged the setting up of a Johannesburg directorate for property management as a measure to curb the problem of city-owned buildings that were occupied illegally. In July 2025, the report by the commission was handed over to Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi in its final form.
