More than 800 people were left homeless in four separate fires that gutted informal settlements around Cape Town since Friday night, Western Cape firefighters said.
About 250 dwellings were destroyed in the fires in Khayelitsha, Fish Hoek and two settlements near Milnerton, said Cape Town disaster-management spokesperson Johan Minnie. There were no injuries or deaths.
Arrangements were being made to provide accommodation, food, blankets and building materials to those left homeless, said Minnie.
The cause of the fires was not known, but gale-force winds buffeting the Cape had helped to spread them.
Friday and Saturday had been classified red fire-danger days — when there is extreme danger of fires spreading — with high temperatures, strong winds and no rain in a while. — Sapa