By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
One person has died and four others were injured after a fire engulfed an informal settlement in KwaZulu-Natal.
The fire at the Kennedy Road informal settlement in Durban destroyed more than 500 shacks.
According to eThekwini Municipality spokesperson Lindiwe Khuzwayo, their firefighting team responded to a request for assistance at about 03:00.
“We estimate that over 500 shacks were destroyed. Tragically, one adult is deceased and a child is missing,” said Khuzwayo.
A search for the child is under way.
The City’s Emergency and Disaster teams, along with Gift of the Givers, are on the scene assisting families.
This is not the first blaze that hit this informal settlement, but community members said it was the biggest they’ve seen to date.
The cause of the fire is not yet known. However, some eyewitnesses say it started when two people, who had been drinking, got into an argument.
A Red Cross spokesman described it as a disaster and estimated that about 1,000 shacks may have been destroyed, leaving some 3,000 people homeless.
Siyabonga Hlatshwayo told the eNCA that the Red Cross had been distributing hot meals, mattresses and blankets to those affected and he appealed to the public for more donations.
This fire comes a week after a 111 shacks burnt at the Masinenge informal settlement on the South Coast.