National / 8 September 2023 IN PICTURES: Joburg’s bad policies and burnt buildings By Delwyn Verasamy Facebook X Email LinkedIn WhatsApp 80 Albert Street in Marshalltown caught fire last year and claimed the lives of 77 people. This week, the Mail & Guardian took a deep dive into the circumstances that surrounded the death of 77 people who were burnt to death in a building in the middle of Africa’s richest city. Delwyn Verasamy’s photographs capture the despair of the abandoned people who live in Joburg’s decaying buildings. The remains of the burnt building in Johannesburg. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) A look at some of the decay in Johannesburg’s inner city. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Emergency medical services in the building at 80 Albert Street in Marshalltown, Johannesburg. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) The remains of the burnt building in Johannesburg. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) A deeper look into Johannesburg’s inner city. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Just the beginning: The 80 Albert Street blaze was a tragedy waiting to happen – as are many other buildings in the city. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Survivors of the Marshalltown fire in a shelter. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Decay: Asyatu Madi (left) jumped from the fourth floor of 80 Albert Street, saving her and Benjamin Moffet’s baby. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Shereza Sibanda, of the Inner City Resource Centre, said people have been living ‘temporarily’ in the Moth building for 15 years. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) State of disaster: Edith Mbambisa was one of 150 people sent to Moth. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Councillors hold a press conference on the housing problem years in the making. (Delwyn Verasamy/M&G) Tags: Joburg buildings, Joburg fire, Joburg housing, Johannesburg