A FIRE that broke out at around 1.20am this morning gutted several shacks at the KwaMathambo Informal Settlement on North Coast Road, leaving hundreds destitute.

According to ward councillor Deochand Ganesh 40 shacks were affected.

Tyron Powell of Marshall Security said they received an emergency call from one of the elderly residents from the settlement and dispatched the fire department to the scene.

“The elderly caller escaped injury but her house was severely damaged on the left side, the informal settlement burnt to the ground,” he said.

The cause of the fire appeared to be illegal power connections in the neighboring informal settlements, he added.