At least eight people were reported dead in fires or from exposure on Tuesday as icy weather gripped the country.
In Nancefield in Soweto, two babies died when the shack they were in caught fire.
Johannesburg Emergency Services spokesperson Malcolm Midgley said one was about four weeks old and the other about a year old.
The babies’ mother left them alone in the shack while she went to fetch water and returned to find it in flames.
Midgley said the fire was believed to have been caused by illegal electrical connections — an illegal connection to the shack, and an illegal connection to a spiral plate. He said the connection meant the plate heated up continuously instead of remaining at a constant temperature, causing the fire.
In Adrian Street in Sandton, one man died and another was taken to hospital in a ”very serious” condition when they were overcome by the fumes from a brazier fire.
Midgley said the men were believed to be construction workers who had been working on a property and were trying to keep warm overnight. ”They took the brazier into the building, and sealed up all the doors and windows.”
In Honeydew, a house burned down after its thatched roof caught alight at about 4am but nobody was injured.
Midgley said the occupants had lit a fire in the fireplace overnight and later the roof apparently caught fire.
Four men died in different incidents in Port Elizabeth, said police.
Captain Ernest Sigobe said the four were all found outside, had no visible injuries and were believed to have died of exposure.
They were all found between 8.30am and 9.30am on Tuesday.
One was found in Zwide, one in Walmer, one in Greenbushes and one in Motherwell. Not all had been identified.
In Pretoria, a woman died after a fire gutted the Arcadia old age home just after midnight on Tuesday morning, said Tshwane Emergency Services.
”The elderly woman was burned to death when the Huiskroondal old-age home caught fire,” said spokesperson Johan Pieterse.
He said 20 other elderly people rescued from the fire were treated for smoke inhalation.
The cause of the fire was unknown. — Sapa