250 people left homeless after 45 shacks gutted by fire at Plastic View informal settlement

Two hundred and fifty people left homeless after 45 shacks gutted by fire in Plastic View Informal settlement in Centurion, Tshwane on Saturday morning.

One (1) patient was treated and transported for smoke inhalation and moderate injuries and three (3) were treated for minor injuries on the scene.

City of Tshwane emergency services spokesperson Charles Mabaso said City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department responded to a fire incident involving 45 shacks at Plastic View informal settlement on Saturday 04 November 2023.

One (1) patient was treated and transported for smoke inhalation and moderate injuries and three (3) were treated for minor injuries on the scene but refused transport to a medical facility.

“Two hundred and fifty (250) people lost shelter and personal belongings because of the fire,” Mabaso said.

He said the emergency services responded to the scene after 04:33 and arrived on the scene to find multiple shacks on fire and immediately started with firefighting operations while protecting scores of unburned shacks from being affected.

The fire was contained and subsequently extinguished.

“The Tshwane Emergency Services Department will intensify public awareness campaigns at this informal settlement as part of continuous education to the communities on fire safety and disaster risk reduction,” he said.

Mabaso said the department calls on residents to use paraffin stoves with extreme caution, never leave open fires without adult supervision or unattended, never to overload electrical plugs with appliances.

“Illegal connections of electricity are a fire and life hazard which residents should always be aware that it might lead to emergency incidents.

Tshwane Emergency Services Department Disaster Management, together with the city’s Community and Social Development Department are coordinating relief efforts for the affected,” he said.

He said the National and Provincial Departments of human Settlement have been notified of the incident.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.