2 informal settlement fires displace hundreds in Cape Town
Around 200 structures have been razed to the ground by an early morning blaze that tore through the Ekuphumleni informal settlement in Du Noon.
A number of homes were destroyed in a fire at the Wag 'n Bietjie informal settlement in Nomzamo, Strand. Picture: Supplied
CAPE TOWN - It's a bleak Christmas for hundreds of Capetonians who have lost their homes and belongings to fires on Wednesday morning.
Around 200 structures have been razed to the ground by an early morning blaze that tore through the Ekuphumleni informal settlement in Du Noon.
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At the same time, 17 families have been left without a roof over their heads after a fire destroyed their homes at the Freedom informal settlement in Nomzamo, Strand.
On Tuesday, 82 structures were gutted in Masiphumelele near Kommetjie, leaving 450 people displaced.
Ten fires have ripped through several informal settlements in Cape Town over the past week, leaving at least 1,000 people displaced.
One person also died at Wag 'n Bietjie informal settlement in Nomzamo on Monday evening.
Humanitarian aid organisation Gift of the Givers' Ali Sablay says the fires have caused total devastation for many families.
"Many of the families in the informal settlements, when it comes to this time of the year. They belong to a stokvel system where every month they put money away to buy groceries, new school uniforms, and stationery. Within seconds, all of this has completely burnt out."
Sablay says their teams are assisting the affected families.