Lesedi Mphatsoe of Orange Farm fire station was killed on Wednesday night.
The bullet had hit him in the chest.
Mphatsoe had gone to the man’s Vanderbijlpark home to serve a letter on him that warned him to appear before a hearing.
Samwu national media officer Papikie Mohale said the union was convinced that the firefighter intended to kill Mphatsoe.
“Our member (Mphatsoe) was committed to the work of Samwu while the perpetrator belonged to a union which just mushroomed in the sector,” he said.
“We are deeply disappointed that the mushrooming union, which the perpetrator belonged to, has shut down the Orange Farm fire station so that workers can go defend the perpetrator during his court appearance.”
Police spokesman Captain Johannes Motsiri said an argument broke out between the two men at the house.
“He shot him in the chest and the commander died at the scene. The suspect was arrested. The firearm, licensed, was recovered,” he said.
Another man who was with the station commander escaped unharmed, and was the one who called the police.
Speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, a fellow firefighter said the shooting was the culmination of events that occurred in May, when firefighters Michael Letsosa, 33, and Dan Zwane, 54, died of smoke inhalation after being trapped in a building in the CBD.
It was alleged that the incident manager had taken the pair with him into the building to determine where the ignition point was, even though he was supposed to have remained outside because he was in charge of the scene.
When the men went in, they didn’t take a hose with them. Had they done so, it would’ve helped them fight the fire and serve as a guide to lead them out if they got lost.
Long after the three went into the building, the incident manager crawled out. Other firefighters rushed into the smoke-filled building and found Letsosa and Zwane dead.
Many of the firefighters blamed the deaths on bad management.
The alleged gunman, who has since been arrested, was one of the firefighters who had initiated complaints about their working conditions and salaries.
He and his colleagues went on a go-slow at the Orange Farm station. Instead of reporting to work at 7am and leaving at 7pm, they started working their own hours, from 8am to 4pm.
He was one of those who were suspended more than two months ago, and returned to work only last week.
Spokeswoman for Johannesburg Emergency Services Nana Radebe said Mphatsoe’s legacy would remain in their hearts.
“He selflessly invested 21 years’ dedication of medical and fire rescue experience to the city and its citizens. He will surely be missed by his colleagues and the citizens of Johannesburg.
“At the moment, we are not prepared to engage on details of the alleged allegations as a criminal case with the police is currently under way,” she said.
