That's it from us in London and South Africa as we end our live coverage of events in Johannesburg.

To keep up to date with the latest developments, please follow our news story here.

Today's writers were Damian Zane, Thomas Mackintosh, Antoinette Radford, Jacqueline Howard, Anna Boyd, Ali Abbas Ahmadi in London, Basillioh Rukanga and Gloria Aradi in Nairobi, and Pumza Fihlani and Samantha Granville in Johannesburg. The page was edited throughout the day by Nathan Williams, James Harness, Emma Owen, Yaroslav Lukov and Alexandra Fouché.

Alexandra Fouché
Live reporter

Image source, Reuters

Survivors of an overnight fire in Johannesburg have been left shattered and destitute after the blaze destroyed a five-storey building in the city overnight.

Authorities, which must now grapple with the fallout, have promised to provide support for those who were made homeless and to investigate the origin of the fire.

Here's a look back at the day's developments:

• 74 people - including 12 children - died in a fire that broke out in a five-storey building in Johannesburg, South Africa’s biggest city
• Around 200 families have been affected, according to officials. It is unclear where they will sleep tonight
• The fire was in a "hijacked" building- a term used to describe buildings that have been taken over by criminal gangs, who then rent them out to make money
• Authorities are unsure what caused the fire
• We heard accounts of survivors who were forced to jump from upper floors and throw their children out of windows to escape the blaze
• President Cyril Ramaphosa who visited the site said the tragedy was a "wake-up call for us" to address the issue of housing in the inner city

Image source, SABC

As night falls in Johannesburg, President Cyril Ramaphosa is visiting the site of the tragedy where he has been briefed by city and regional officials.

Talking to journalists, he praised the work of the firefighters and said the actions taken by the authorities were "in line with what we expect".

The president said that those who lost their homes will be catered for - from accommodation to trauma counselling to medical needs.

He said it was a "wake-up call for us" to address the issue of housing in the inner city. He said he wanted officials to find solutions and better ways of dealing with these issues.

"We have to address this problem and root out those criminal elements" who take advantage of vulnerable people.

"Poor people need to live in the city, but there needs to be law and order," he said.

"When a building is condemned, we go through too many processes that can lead to this type of situation," he added.

Image source, AFP

Some have described the building where the fire took place as having been "hijacked".

Many properties around the area where the blaze happened have been deemed unfit to live in.

Yet these old blocks, abandoned by their owners or the city authorities, are full of families often paying rent to criminal gangs who run them.

The buildings, which lack running water, toilets or a legal electricity connection, are then said to have been "hijacked".

Scores of people often live in one room, often former offices. Fires are common - though nothing on the scale of the one that went up in flames overnight.

A firefighter at the scene of the five-storey building, in an area called Marshalltown, said many shack-like structures had been erected inside - making things even more combustible.

People tend to cook on paraffin stoves and during the cold winter months - June to September - fires are often lit in large metal drums with wood and other scavenged items thrown in for fuel.

Read more about about these "hijacked" buildings.

Two people who lived in the building which caught fire have been describing how they and others escaped.

One man tells how his niece was thrown from the building and caught by people below.

Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda has said temporary accommodation is being provided to survivors of the deadly fire - but this will end after 72 hours.

"After 72 hours the Human Settlements department will advise on where they will be taken," Gwamanda said in a statement, external, adding that there were logistical and verification issues at play.

There are currently three sites providing temporary housing to the approximately 200 families affected.

The long-awaited and delayed press conference by Johannesburg's city officials has now ended. It was confusing at times, and the authorities were asked repeatedly to clarify the death toll.

Here are the main points:

• Officials confirmed 74 people had died - 24 women, 40 men, and 10 unidentified. Out of these, 12 were children
• A representative of the health department said the bodies were in the process of being identified, and officials aimed to make them ready to be viewed as early as Friday morning
• Johannesburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda said local executives "truly understand the gravity of the situation that has befallen our city"
• City manager Floyd Brink said 200 families had been affected, and "all efforts" were being taken to provide them with accommodation and social and psychological support
• Brink also confirmed the burned building did indeed belong to the city. It had been leased out to a different department to be used as a shelter for abused women - before being "hijacked"
• He added authorities would "act diligently" to investigate the cause of the fire, and a plan to counter "hijacked" buildings and "lawlessness" in Johannesburg would be announced later

Image source, EPA

The news conference has now ended. While it was taking place, we learned that President Cyril Ramaphosa is due to visit the site of the blaze shortly - at 17:30 (15:30 GMT).

He had earlier described the impact of the fire as "a great tragedy".

A government statement, external says he will be briefed on the operation and the support the authorities are giving those affected.

A representative from the health department says now they have retried 74 bodies - 24 women, 40 men, and 10 that they are unable to gender.

Among the 74 are 12 children, he says.

Earlier in this press conference, we quoted officials with a death toll of 73 - this has been clarified as a counting technicality. One of the victims died in hospital. So, 73 died on site, 74 have died in total.

They are busy registering the bodies at the moment, and intend to process them and make them ready to be viewed as early as tomorrow morning.

Several other unidentified body parts were also found.

A representative of the emergency services says 73 bodies found in the building, but authorities are combing through the building from the basement up to the 5th floor to search for more.

The team is accompanied by a structural engineer as they search, given the damage to the building

Brink is now speaking about the "hijacking" of the building concerned.

In October 2019 it was raided and a number of foreign nationals were arrested and charged for illegally collecting rent from tenants, he says.

That matter was then handed over to the police.

Floyd Brink says the city appreciates help from the private sector - including NGOs and other private buildings - to deal with the disaster and to support with its aftermath.

He says "we will do our best to act diligently" in investigating the fire, and to regain control of illegally occupied buildings in the city.

Specific plans to counter the "lawlessness" in Johannesburg will be announced later, he concludes.

Brink says all efforts are being undertaken to provide and social and psychological support to all those affected.

He says the city has identified three sites to offer alternative accommodation, and that around 200 families were affected by the fire.

Brink adds that the affected building does belong to the city of Johannesburg, and it was initially leased to a different department to be used as a shelter for a abused women.

Firefighters were first alerted to the fire at 1:19am, and the first responders were on site 10 minutes later, City Manager Floyd Brink says.

A number of emergency resources, including two fire engines and 43 firefighters were deployed soon after, he says.

As of 2pm today, he said, 61 people have been treated in hospitals around Johannesburg.

He says 73 people have died - 66 adults and 7 children.

The mayor adds that it the government must take measures to "ensure that we do not experience the same situation again".

The series of tragedies and disasters in Johannesburg "ends today", he says.

A lot of households are anticipating answers to certain questions, he says, before handing over to the other officials.

Gwamanda speaks of his sadness at seeing the city this morning.

He says it is hard to witness the tragedy of people having lost their lives in such large numbers.

He introduces the team running the preliminary investigation into the situation.

All levels of government will be involved in the response, Gwamanda says.

Johannesburg's mayor Kabelo Gwamanda begins by extending his condolences to the families of those who died. "We share the pain of those that have suffered grave injury," he says.

He says local executives "truly understand the gravity of the situation that has befallen our city".

The emergency services news conference we've been expecting still appears to be delayed.

When it starts we will bring you the latest news from it.

You'll also be able to watch it at the top of this page by pressing the Play icon.

While we wait for the emergency services news conference here are some photos taken by African Christian Democratic Party Councillor Norman Mkhonza.

He, and other politicians, travelled to the blaze site earlier today.

The images illustrate the flurry of activity outside the gutted building with charred window frames in central Johannesburg.

Image source, Supplied: ACDP

Image source, Supplied: ACDP

Image source, Supplied: ACDP

Image source, Supplied: ACDP

We've just heard that the news conference has been delayed slightly.

We're now expecting to hear from South African emergency services at around 16:30 local time (15:30 BST).