Mercury: Fire leaves two dead and 2 000 homeless

The pilot project to electrify shack settlements is a result of years of struggle on this issue by Abahlali baseMjondolo.

http://www.themercury.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=5541562

Fire leaves two dead and 2 000 homeless

July 05, 2010 Edition 1

GUGU MBONAMBI

TWO people burnt to death and about 500 shacks were gutted in a fire at Durban’s Kennedy Road informal settlement in Clare Estate yesterday.

About 2 000 residents were left homeless by the fourth fire at the settlement this year.

Colonel Jay Naicker said a police officer on patrol saw several shacks on fire at about 3am and called the fire department.

About 500 shacks were destroyed. Two men were burnt to death – one was 70 years old, the other 34 years old,” he said.

Fire department divisional commander Alfred Newman said the fire was probably started by an unattended candle.

“The settlement was well alight when firefighters arrived at 3.07am and several shacks were totally gutted, displacing about 2 000 people. It was a large fire and strong winds made firefighting difficult,” he said.

“The eThekwini municipality disaster management assisted residents by issuing meal packs and blankets. Others residents were already trying to erect their shacks using burnt remains,” he added.

Visvin Reddy, chairman of the council’s infrastructure committee, said the city had started a pilot project to electrify informal settlements about three months ago.

According to a report tabled before the infrastructure committee last month, settlements in Redcliffe and Kenville had been identified as pilot sites for the project.

“Intervention in these two areas is deemed critical to address problems that could potentially result in additional fatalities and constant power outages to paying customers… It is estimated that the cost of implementing these two pilots is in the region of R24 million,” the report said.