MyJHB

Stuff from Johannesburg

South Africa battles to control second Covid wave as cases top 1m | MyJHB.co.za

Johannesburg in the news:

  1. South Africa battles to control second Covid wave as cases top 1m: South African officials have met to discuss the reintroduction of tighter coronavirus restrictions as a second wave of Covid-19 infections took the number of confirmed cases since the start of the … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  2. Family meeting with Ramaphosa set for tonight at 8pm: South Africa has been in the grip of a rapidly increasing infection rate as a new variant takes hold that spreads much faster than the first. – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  3. South Africa logs million coronavirus cases: South Africa logged its millionth case of coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) on Monday as the pandemic showed no signs of letting up. Global infections have raced past 80 million with nearly 1.8 … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  4. Fewer fixtures and more money amid a £10m cash injection: What PRO16 with South African sides means for Wales’ regions: South African sides Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers are to link up with teams from Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Italy to form the PRO16 … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews
  5. Officer, 2 suspects die in attack on police in Chechnya: Two brothers attacked police with knives Monday in Chechnya, killing an officer and injuring another before being shot dead, the Russian republic’s leader said. Ramzan Kadyrov, … – “Johannesburg” – BingNews

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Have you tried: Visiting Port Elizabeth?

Did you know this about Johannesburg? It’s not the only place in the world called Johannesburg: There’s a town called Johannesburg in California in the USA. It was named by miners who worked the gold mines in Johannesburg, South Africa and has an estimated population of less than 2,000.

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Ponte City: Transformation

As the “white flight” of the 1980s and 90s drained the inner city of capital, Ponte City underwent a dramatic and terrifying transformation. By the late 1990s, the building had become a “vertical slum” and a symbol of urban decay. It was famously “hijacked” by gangs; the retail levels were stripped, and the building became a fortress for drug dealing and human trafficking. The most haunting image from this era was the central core. Originally designed to be a light-filled courtyard, it became a literal trash heap. Residents on the upper floors would throw their refuse into the center of the building rather than taking it down. At its worst point, the trash in the core reached five stories high—a mountain of rotting debris, discarded furniture, and even, legend has it, the remains of those who had fallen or jumped.

During this period, the reputation of Ponte was so toxic that there was a serious proposal in 1998 to turn the entire skyscraper into a vertical prison. The plan was eventually scrapped, but the building remained a “no-go zone” for nearly a decade. The turnaround began in the mid-2000s when developers New Metro Property Group and later Dlala Nje began a massive, painstaking refurbishment. They cleared out the tons of trash from the core, restored the lifts (which had often been out of order, forcing residents to climb 50 flights of stairs), and implemented strict security protocols.