More than a month after a fire ripped through Chetty’s Sea Food, destroying stock, freezers, counters and other equipment, the family-run business is rebuilding and hopes to be fully operational again by the end of October.
The fire broke out at the premises in the early hours of a morning in late August, causing extensive damage to the store and severely disrupting its operations. Chetty’s Sea Food’s Michelle Soobramoney said the family was alerted to the blaze by a neighbour after the store’s alarm was triggered.
“We were contacted by the neighbour and notified about the fire. At the time, my dad was not at the premises, however, the alarm had gone off and he was trying to find out whether my mum, who was at the premises, was aware of what was happening,” said Soobramoney.
According to Soobramoney, KZN VIP, SAPS and members of the public responded to the scene, with security personnel and passing motorists attempting to contain the blaze with buckets of water while awaiting the arrival of firefighters. She said the family believed an earlier response from firefighters could potentially have limited the extent of the damage.
“The fire brigade took quite a while to get to the scene, approximately 45 minutes after we made a callout. It could have been much better if they had responded earlier, however, we are extremely grateful to the KZN VIP team and every member of the public who stopped and tried to assist us,” she said.
The cause of the fire remains unclear. Soobramoney said a report provided to the family referred to an electrical cause but did not clarify exactly how the blaze started.
“Everything was burnt in the shop, from our counters and freezers to the equipment and tiles. We also lost all the stock that was inside the freezers,” she said.
The destruction has dealt a significant financial blow to the business, which has been unable to operate at full capacity for more than a month. Soobramoney said Chetty’s Sea Food was operating with only two freezers and limited stock while renovations continued.
“We have suffered a lot of setbacks as the shop is not running fully. We only have about two freezers running so the income is not the same as well,” said Soobramoney.
Despite the setback, the family has continued trading and serving customers while repairs are under way. Soobramoney said the family was determined to rebuild the business and hoped renovations would be completed towards the end of October.
“We are currently renovating and we are doing our best to continue serving our customers and clientele. We should hopefully be fully operational again by the end of October,” she said.
