The City of Cape Town’s firefighters had a busy weekend after responding to four separate informal residential fires from Saturday evening into Sunday morning.

At 19:20, reports came in of structures ablaze on Mshumpela Way in Langa. Eleven firefighting vehicles and approximately 40 personnel responded to the scene.

By 21:40, the flames were extinguished, with no reported injuries or fatalities. Initial assessments suggested around 40 structures were impacted by the fire.

Later, at 23:20, emergency services responded to a blaze in Site 5, Dunoon. Over 50 staff and 12 firefighting resources were deployed. An Incident Management Team (IMT) type 4 was activated for effective scene management. The fire was extinguished by 04:30, though nearly 80 structures suffered damage.

Around 01:35, firefighting crews were called back to Mshumpela Way in Langa after a second fire broke out. Ten firefighting vehicles managed to contain and extinguish the flames by 04:25. Approximately 50 informal structures were affected. One individual was assaulted by the public and required medical attention.

At 02:30, another incident was reported in Umzumbe Street, Mfuleni. Over 50 firefighters and a dozen firefighting vehicles were dispatched. By 08:50, the blaze was under control, but, a man and a woman died of fatal burn wounds. Additionally, one person sustained serious injuries and another had a laceration to the arm.

The cause of these fires remains unknown, pending investigation by the South African Police Service.

Humanitarian aid to those affected by the fires

The Disaster Risk Management Centre (DRMC) has mobilized personnel to Langa, Dunoon, and Mfuleni following the weekend fires.

In addition, DRM volunteers have been enlisted to aid in the response efforts, while the centre’s mobile Joint Operations Centre has been dispatched to Dunoon.

DRMC teams will conduct thorough assessments at the fire sites to determine the extent of structural damage and the number of people affected. These evaluations will require some time before final figures can be determined.

In addition, relevant City services will be activated to initiate clean-up operations at the affected sites and restore any disrupted services resulting from the fires.

Humanitarian aid partners, including Gift of the Givers, have been informed to assist those impacted by the fires. This aid will include essential items such as food, blankets, clothing, toiletry packs, and more.