Residents and first responders to the Angelo informal settlement gas leak, which claimed 17 lives, have described the aftermath of the tragedy.

'When I arrived, I found that the one gas cylinder was still [leaking] gas as I could hear the hissing sound of escaping gas," said Samuel Malaza, a resident of Angelo informal settlement, who was one of the first responders at the scene of a deadly gas leak in Boksburg on Wednesday evening.

"I stumbled forward and soon realised that I was walking on dead bodies."

A total of 17 people died following the gas leak at the Angelo informal settlement. While the cause of the leak is still being investigated, it's been linked to large-scale illegal mining in the area.

Devastated families

Outside a shack that was chained with a huge padlock, an unfinished carton of full-cream milk sat on a small makeshift table. It was just one sign of the life-saving measures locals tried to employ.

"They were using the milk to try to revive the grandmother... and her granddaughter who lived in this yard," said Belinda Mashaba (37).

Mashaba was a close friend of the family, and neighbours called her after the disaster. In many African cultures, it's believed that milk cures inhaled gas fumes.

"I was phoned this morning and the people who phoned me...