Johannesburg Apartment Fire Kills 73; Building Reportedly Occupied by Homeless

Firefighters work at the scene of a deadly blaze in the early hours of the morning, in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Aug. 31, 2023. Shiraaz/Reuters

JOHANNESBURG—Scores were killed overnight when fire tore through a derelict Johannesburg apartment block occupied by homeless people, officials and local media said on Thursday, as emergency evacuations from the blackened building continued.

The fire killed at least 73 people and injured 43, the municipal government said, in one of South Africa’s worst such tragedies in living memory.