A 70-year-old man died this morning when a shack he was sleeping in caught fire in Ducats North, outside Beacon Bay.
East London police spokeswoman Warrant Officer Hazel Mqala said the incident occurred around 3am.
Mqala said the elderly man, whose name is not being released until his next-of-kin are notified of his death, was sleeping alone at the time of the incident.
She said the cause of the fire was unknown. Police have opened an inquiry on the matter.