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It is very unfortunate that fires have struck large sections of the various informal settlement camps that surround the fringes of Cape Town, causing serious damage and homelessness to families who are already living under difficult conditions. The details of the various fires are as follows:

1. Lwandle (near Somerset West) - On Wednesday, 21 November 2001, and over the weekend of Saturday, 24 November 2001, 91 shacks were destroyed in a fire, and two people were killed as a result thereof.

2. Joe Slovo Squatter Camp (Langa): At 17:00 on Monday, 26 November 2001, a fire swept through the Joe Slovo Squatter Camp, destroying 66 shacks.

3. Lusaka Squatter Camp (Nyanga East): At 02:00 on Tuesday, 27 November 2001, a fire swept through the Lusaka Squatter Camp, destroying 23 shacks.

4. Site B. (Khayelitsha): On Wednesday, 28 November, at an undisclosed hour, a fire swept through the Site B Squatter Camp, destroying approximately 200 shacks.

In all of the above cases, there was a rapid response in order to help those who had been affected by the fires. In terms of the Provincial Disaster Management Plan, the local authority with the assistance of organisations such as the Red Cross provided immediate assistance to those affected. In terms of an agreement between the Department of Social Services and local authorities/support organisations, financial assistance will be provided by the Department to cover some of the immediate expenditure incurred.

The Department already requested a report on the situation so that social relief to the amount of R500 per affected family can be considered. A report on Joe Slovo and Lusaka was received this morning whilst the report on Khayelitsha should be available tomorrow.

The procedure followed thereafter will be to complete individual application forms per family, the verification thereof and then the payment of the social relief.

As the responsible MEC for Social Services and Poverty Relief in the Western Cape, I wish to convey my sincere and heartfelt condolences to the families of those persons whose lives have been lost in the fire. I further wish to express my concern about the losses incurred as a result of the fire.

I want to urge the communities of the various squatter camps around Cape Town and also in other parts of our Province, to exercise caution when using flammable substances for cooking and lighting. We are now entering the summer season, which is characterised by fires and the related fire hazards. Please be careful.

I also want to thank the various local authorities, faith based organisations, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), and community based organisations (CBOs) for the roles that they have played in assisting the affected people.

I shall be visiting the affected areas tomorrow to assess for myself the extent of the damage, and my tour will start from the Joe Slovo Squatter Camp (next to Vanguard Drive) at 09:00 tomorrow morning. Details may be obtained from my office.

Contact: Sam Dodgen at (021) 4835457/082 821 9018

Issued by: Office of the MEC of Social Services and Poverty Relief, Western Cape, 29 November 20001