Cape Town - A man and woman were killed on Tuesday morning, presumably by smoke inhalation, after their shack caught fire, and they could not open a security gate to escape.
The shack, in Malawi Camp near Elsies River, was a hive of activity as paramedics tried to save the victims. The incident occurred at 5am on Tuesday morning
A witness said a child, possibly the victims’ son or daughter, had survived the fire. The witness said one of the parents had been able to bend the security gate back far enough to enable the child to scramble to safety. The adults were trapped, however.
At the time of going to print, city officials could not confirm what had happened. The exact cause of death was also unknown, with smoke inhalation being the most likely.
“A full report will be released during the course of today (Tuesday),” said City Disaster Management spokesman, Wilfred Solomons-Johannes.
A spate of fires across the Western Cape recently has claimed numerous lives, particularly of people living in shacks. Between January and August, there were 50 fire-related deaths – with blazes last month accounting for seven of the victims.
“The main cause of fires is people leaving open flames and fires unattended and not extinguishing candles, lamps and paraffin stoves,” Solomons-Johannes told the Cape Argus last week.
“Residents must take responsibility for their own safety and the city, through its public awareness campaigns, tries to inculcate a culture of risk avoidance,” he said. - Cape Argus
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