Wednesday, December 7, 2011

1790 stranded after shack fires

LANGA residents have appealed to the city of Cape Town to relocate residents who were left homeless when their shacks burnt down last weekend.

Fire destroyed about 178 shacks at various informal settlements, leaving about 626 people homeless. Two people also died over the weekend.

The first incident occurred on Saturday night in Zone 18, where about 56 shacks were destroyed and 166 people left homeless.

On Sunday night about 42 shacks were burnt on Brenton Road, one person died, another one was injured and 160 people were displaced. On the same day in Zone 24 about 80 shacks burnt down and 300 people became homeless.

The cause of the fire is unknown.

Weziwe Hewu said: "People call Langa embawuleni because our houses are affected by fire every year. I don't know where I'm going to sleep because all my relatives also lost their homes."

In Zone 24 some people were rebuilding their shacks, while others were sitting in the shade waiting for the council to give them building material.

"I don't have money to buy building material. I don't even know how I am going to rebuild my shack because the council promised to give us five sheets of corrugated iron and 10 poles each, which are not enough. My shack was old so I can't use that material," Nobandla Stemela said.

ANC councillor Mayenzeke Sopaqa said he had informed the disaster risk management and promised to provide the victims with food and building material. The city's disaster risk management spokesperson Wilfred Solomons urged people to be cautious.

"More than 1790 people were left homeless after 14 separate fires across the Cape Peninsula this weekend, and 10 people died in fires," he said.

He said the council has provided humanitarian relief to the victims that were affected by the various fires.

- Sowetan

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