A 23-year-old male’s body was discovered after a shack caught fire in the Kanana informal settlement in Gugulethu on Sunday night, with the cause of the blaze still under investigation.
The City of Cape Town’s Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters were alerted to the incident at 10.20pm on Sunday, July 12, after reports of structures on fire in the informal settlement.
City Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said firefighting crews from Gugulethu and Mitchells Plain were dispatched to the scene.
“The city’s Fire and Rescue Service received a call at 22:20 about structures alight in Kanana informal settlement, Gugulethu. Crews from Gugulethu and Mitchells Plain responded to the scene,” Carelse said.
Firefighters managed to contain the blaze within half an hour.
“By 22:50, the fire was extinguished, which destroyed a single shack,” he said.
While crews were extinguishing the flames, a body was discovered inside the burnt structure at approximately 10.35pm.
Carelse said the South African Police Service would investigate the circumstances surrounding the fire, including its cause.
However, when contacted for comment, the SAPS said Gugulethu police had no record of the incident.
“Please be advised that Gugulethu SAPS has no record of the mentioned incident. Kindly ask your source to open a case at their nearest police station for this office to be able to provide you with a suitable response,” said SAPS Media Centre spokesperson Thembakazi Mpendukana.
It was not immediately clear why police had no record of the incident despite the city confirming firefighters had attended the scene and a body had been found. Further enquiries have been submitted to SAPS.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane / ANAStudio
Image: Ayanda Ndamane / ANA Studio
The family of the deceased confirmed to this publication that the victim was 23 years old but declined to be interviewed, saying they were still devastated by the loss and were not ready to speak publicly about what had happened.
The incident has once again drawn attention to the devastating impact of shack fires in Cape Town’s informal settlements, where densely packed structures and the use of open flames, paraffin stoves, candles, and illegal electricity connections can allow fires to spread rapidly. Firefighters frequently respond to such incidents, particularly during the colder winter months, when residents rely on heating and cooking devices to keep warm.
The city has repeatedly urged residents to take precautions by ensuring candles and open flames are extinguished before going to sleep, keeping heating devices away from flammable materials, and avoiding unsafe electrical connections where possible.
At this stage, authorities have not indicated whether foul play is suspected, and the cause of the fire remains under investigation.
