Image: SINO MAJANGAZA
A fire ripped through Parkridge, East London on Monday afternoon, razing 40 shacks and leaving 114 people homeless.
Three houses were also destroyed in the blaze but there were no reports of injuries, according to Buffalo City Metro.
Resident Brenda Fivefen said she got the shock of her life when she was called at work to say her house was on fire.
“I nearly fell down. My boss rushed me home. My poor kids are so traumatised,” Fivefen said.
All the family's belongings were destroyed in the fire.
“If the fire brigade had come, my house and the other shacks could have been saved. I couldn't do anything, it [the house] had already burnt down. I didn't manage to save anything. I had cakes to bake for this weekend,” Fivefen said
Leticia Dennis, 47, said she made more than 10 calls to the fire department but it took them over an hour to arrive.
“How many calls must we make to get help? Every time I was just told that emergency services were on the way and were busy filling up their tanks and then I was cut off. They didn't want to identify themselves,” Dennis said.
She lives with three people. They all lost everything in the fire.
“It's finished, down to the ground. I've got nothing left. We have nothing but the clothes on our backs. All I saved was our children. As we're standing here we've got nowhere to go.”
BCM spokesperson Samkelo Ngwenya said the fire was extinguished later in the afternoon.
“Firefighters battled for a while but managed to extinguish the blaze. The cause of the fire is suspected to be illegal electricity connections,” Ngwenya said.
It was unfortunate this happened in the middle of winter, he added. Those who had lost their homes would be accommodated at Parkside Hall, where they would be supplied with blankets and food.
“We'll activate Sassa in terms of social relief packages, and we'll also be engaging with the department of home affairs. Because it's also the time of Covid-19, we'll also activate the department of health so that they can come in and screen people so we can pick up anyone who might be symptomatic.”
Ngwenya said this was one of the dire consequences of illegal electricity connections.
“We've been trying to drum this into people to stop connecting electricity illegally. We are relieved there was no loss of life but sad we've now got families without homes.”