A widely-respected member of the Grahamstown community died this morning after going back into his burning house to see if anyone else remained inside.
A widely-respected member of the Grahamstown community died this morning after going back into his burning house to see if anyone else remained inside.
The New Street home of prominent Grahamstown residents Jayantylal and Sushillaben Naran caught fire at around 5.30am today. Jayantylal, 72, perished in the blaze. His wife and the tenants – four Rhodes University students who lived on the ground floor – escaped unharmed.
It was not known whether Jayantylal had gone out for an early morning walk, as was his habit, until five hours later when the fire was contained. “His body was found in the rubble and we are busy retrieving
it now,” said Grahamstown police spokesperson Captain Mali Govender late this morning.
Their home, situated next to Ruanthai restaurant, was completely devastated by the blaze. “We have to wait for the fire department to finish securing the building before forensics can investigate the scene and determine the cause of the fire,” Govender said shortly before midday.
Jayantylal initially had escaped the fire but returned to the house to make sure that everyone else was out safely, according to family friend and community leader Harry Rama. “Being a person of great courage, he went and checked on everyone else and that’s when he got caught,” Rama said.
“The Grahamstown Hindu community is shocked and saddened. Jayantylal was an adventurous, charitable man who was part of one of the pioneering Hindu families in Grahamstown,” he said.
Jayantylal’s three sons, who live in Johannesburg, were travelling to Grahamstown to be with their family at the time of going to press.
The funeral is likely to be held tomorrow. For further details, please contact Harry Rama at 083 422 0120.
If you would like to share any memories of Jayantylal, or pass on messages of support to his family and friends, please leave a comment below. A selection will be published in Friday's edition of Grocott's Mail.
