Father and four-year-old son die in Edenvale house fire

A father in his 50s and his four-year-old son died in a house fire in Eden Glen, Edenvale, in the early hours of Saturday morning.

The blaze broke out at a double-storey home on Collins Street shortly after 03:35, prompting a response from firefighters from the Edenvale, Primrose and Bedfordview fire stations.

According to Ekurhuleni Disaster and Emergency Management Services (DEMS) spokesperson William Ntladi, firefighters arrived to find the upper section of the house engulfed in flames, with parts of the roof already collapsed.

"Fire suppression was initiated immediately, preventing further structural damage," Ntladi said.

Four upstairs bedrooms, a walk-in closet and a separate bathroom were already fully engulfed, while flames threatened the remaining seven rooms in the house.

Once the fire had been contained and extinguished, firefighters began search, rescue and recovery operations.

Two charred bodies — that of a man believed to be in his 50s and a four-year-old boy — were found in the same room.

Ntladi said information received at the scene indicated that only three people were inside the house when the fire broke out.

The third occupant, a nine-year-old girl, apparently managed to escape unharmed and was taken away from the scene by neighbours.

The cause of the fire has not yet been established and remains under investigation by police forensic officers and DEMS fire safety officials.

A section of Collins Street was temporarily closed to traffic while firefighters conducted operations at the scene.