Four killed in three more Cape Town fires

Four men were found dead in three separate fires across the Cape Town Metro in the early hours of Sunday, the city’s fire and rescue services said.

Spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said 12 firefighters and rescuers in two fire engines rushed to a blaze in an informal settlement in Garden City, Eerste River at 02:30.

The fire was extinguished after 03:00 but one man had died.

After 07:00, 19 firefighters and rescuers put out a fire burning among informal structures in Phakamani road, Mandela Park, Khayelitsha. Another body of a man was found.

A fire in Zola Farm, just off Silverstream road, Mamre, was put out but rescuers found another two men dead.

“All four deceased had sustained fatal burn wounds,” said Carelse.

The causes of the fires are unknown and all the scenes were handed over to the South African Police Service for further investigation.

A devastating blaze swept through Masiphumelele on Monday leaving at least one person dead and 1 200 people homeless.

Further afield in the Eastern Cape, five people perished when the cafe they were sleeping in went up in flames in Dutywa.

Police spokesperson Captain Jackson Manatha confirmed that the five victims were sleeping inside a family café in Mputhi Village when the fire broke out around 04:00 on Saturday morning. Four of the victims were related and included an 18-year-old woman and three children – aged 14, seven and three. The fifth victim, another 18-year-old woman, is believed to have been a family friend.

– News24 Wire

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