Lentswe, Klerksdorp - City Mall in Klerksdorp was evacuated on Friday morning July 5. Employees of shops inside the shopping centre told Lentswe that the structure of the building has apparently been compromised. Steven Mpato from Matlosana Municipality’s Fire and Safety confirmed this saying there are fears the columns in the basement can collapse. “We are pro-active in preventing a disaster,’’ he said.
Matlosana Municipality said the city council’s building inspection team, engineers, SAPS and other authorities conducted an assessment of the mall and had some concerns after noticing cracks in the basement parking area.
Soon afterwards the City Mall management issued a statement that the center was closed to ensure the safety of all occupants. “The authorities require us to provide an engineering report to verify the structural integrity and safety of the premises. Until this report is submitted and reviewed, they have mandated that we close the mall to ensure the safety of all occupants.’’
Over the weekend, DMC Holdings, owner of the City Mall, consulted with two structural engineers who both said the structure is safe and that the mall can re-open.
At the time of going to press on Monday afternoon July 8 the process to re-open the City Mall was underway.
