Mother and two sons perish in a devastating shack fire in an informal settlement in Mayibuye
Community leader Lucky Mokoena said when they tried to extinguish the fire, it was just too big and they ran out of water.
The community of Mayibuye’s Harry Gwala informal settlement has been left reeling after a mother and her two sons, aged 9 and 11, tragically lost their lives in a shack fire that gutted their home. The bodies were discovered in the burnt shack by community members who responded to the incident.
At the moment, it is unclear what sparked the fire in the early hours of September 1 in Ward 110.
In a telephonic interview, community leader Lucky Mokoena said the incident happened around 01:00. He said the community heard someone screaming for help. Upon their arrival, Mokoena said the shack was engulfed in flames, making it impossible for them to extinguish the blaze.
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“Because the flames were so big, and had covered the entire shack, we could not extinguish it in time. The challenge is that we live in an informal settlement and have no access to water.” They either get supplied with water into community tanks or fetch water in Mayibuye with buckets for cooking and drinking.
“The water we had was little,” Mokoena continued, “and, ultimately, ran out before we could contain the fire. It’s a bad experience, and we have not been able to trace their next of kin, or close family relatives.”
According to Mokoena, the woman was seen around 23:00 going to buy something to eat at a local spaza shop. “Those who saw her told her that there was no way that a spaza shop would be open at that time. She was with both her children. We don’t know what happened when she returned to her shack, because a few hours later, that’s when the fire started.”
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Ward 110 ward committee member for social development Annikie Mothibi confirmed the incident. “We woke up to the news that a family of three lost their lives when their shack burnt down in Harry Gwala informal settlement. May their souls rest in perfect peace.”
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