Maseru, March 17 — Some areas of the Setsotso Stadium broke out in flames on Saturday, when the inferno that seemed to have started from Maseru East direction affected some portions of the pitch.
This was confirmed by Lesotho Sport and Recreation Commission (LSRC) Information Officer, Mr. Pule Rantséli in an interview on Sunday.
Mr. Rantséli said they rushed to the Stadium when they heard the message fearing for national federations belongings that were kept in the Stadium stores.
Upon our arrival, we learnt that these things were still safe, however Vodacom towers were affected by this fire.
He further mentioned that the tartans also caught fire, adding that even the rubber which was also to be used in the refurbishment of the Stadium was also affected.
In the same note, he thanked members of LMPS and LDF fire sections for quickly attending to this case, thus cooled and stopped the fire with fire extinguishers.
The Agency has established that social media followers have shared their views with regard to the matter, saying it is good that the Stadium has caught fire so that a new one would be build while others have said it is important for Basotho to preserve the already existing infrastructure so that government can easily do revamping and save money for other crucial services that include health.
Meanwhile, efforts to talk to officials in the Ministry of Tourism, Sports, Arts and Culture were futile as the Ministry is yet to investigate the matter further while mobile phones for some authorities were unreachable.
However, in January this year, Sports Minister, Mr. Motlatsi Maqelepo had assured the nation he would take a leading role towards refurbishing the Stadium, three years later after the ground was on suspension to host international matches.
The Lesotho Sport and Recreation Commission (LSRC) is a government agency established by the Lesotho Sport and Recreation Act No. 3 of 2002. Hand in glove with sporting stakeholders, LSRC aims to ensure development and coordination of sports and recreation in the country.