By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
A man has been arrested after a large fire severely damaged the Houses of Parliament in Cape Town.
A police spokesperson said the 49-year-old man was facing charges of arson, housebreaking and theft, and would appear in court on Tuesday.
Firefighters have been working for hours to extinguish the blaze.
President Cyril Ramaphosa called it a “terrible and devastating event”, as he vowed parliament’s work would continue.
Footage from the scene showed a plume of black smoke filling the sky, with huge flames coming out from the roof of the building.
No injuries have been reported.
Brigadier Nomthandazo Mbambo said the suspect is also expected to be charged under the National Key Points Act, which protects sites of strategic importance.
Further details were not immediately available.
Ramaphosa, who visited the scene on Sunday, said news of the fire was a “terrible setback to what we were basking in yesterday” and added that Archbishop Desmond Tutu would also have been devastated.
He said the building’s sprinkler system had not functioned properly, and praised firefighters for responding to the fire in minutes.
The parliamentary complex, some of which dates back to 1884, consists of a cluster of buildings. The National Assembly, or lower House of Parliament, is situated in what is known as the New Wing.
The upper house, or National Council of Provinces (NCOP), is located in what is called the Old Wing or Old Assembly, which is also used for committee meetings.
“The fire has been contained in the Old Wing. Firefighters are currently trying to control the fire in the New Wing, where the fire has affected the National Assembly Chamber,” parliament said in a statement.
Jean-Pierre Smith, a member of the Cape Town mayoral committee for safety and security, told reporters that the roof above the old assembly hall was “completely gone” and further damage inside the old chamber had not yet been evaluated.
“It is not possible to see whether it’s damaged. We hope it is not because it has so many historical artefacts, but you can’t gain access to it without breaking the doors down and we don’t want to do that,” he said.
He also said that parliament’s fire alarm only rang when firefighters were already on site.