40 shacks destroyed in blaze
Once again lack of an emergency plan fails residents of informal settlement.
The inhabitants of 40 shacks were left destitute after a fire once again ravaged Roodepoort Rugby Club informal settlement.
The cause of the fire that broke out on the afternoon of 12 October has not been determined yet.
The residents the Record spoke to already were discouraged by the damage a fire caused to the settlement in July, with Saturday’s fire compounding their problems. They said they have had enough and demanded that MMC for Housing Dan Bovu should come and visit them.
“The government does not care about us. We shall not vote for them again,” a mother of two said.
This is the second time she lost a shack and most of her belongings to a fire.
While the Record was on the scene on 14 October the Community Workers Programme (CWP) members were helping to rebuild the shacks while Dorcas Aid was distributing food parcels.
Councillor Dave Dewes’ was visibly angry and felt the efforts were disorganised, with too little too late being done. He told the Record that he would release a statement addressing the ongoing problem soon.
