Supermarket destroyed in fire

2010-02-24 08:04

Johannesburg - A supermarket in a shopping centre in Alexandra, north of Johannesburg, was destroyed in a fire on Tuesday night, Johannesburg emergency services said on Wednesday.

Spokesperson Percy Morokane said the supermarket, situated a few metres away from the Pan African shopping centre, caught fire at around 20:00 on Tuesday.

A large part of it was consumed by the flames, while surrounding shops in the centre were not affected.

"It is believed that an electric fault might have started the fire," said Morokane.

Police were called to the scene after residents from neighbouring houses started looting the supermarket.

Police managed to disperse them before anything was taken from the shop and no one was injured during the incident, said Morokane.

About 40 firefighters from seven fire stations in Johannesburg battled the fire, which was extinguished around 02:00 on Wednesday.

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- SAPA