At least three people have been confirmed dead and hundreds homeless after a fire broke out at the Cemetery View informal settlement in South Africa’s capital Pretoria on Saturday night.
Tshwane Emergency Services deputy chief Peter Motolla said the fire started at around 8pm local time, and razed at least 400 houses.
“Three people, including a 5-year-old girl, died in the fire, whose cause is yet to be known,” Motolla said.
It took more than three hours to contain the fire.
“Our teams waited on site until Sunday morning to ensure there were no flare-ups. The place is now an active crime scene and police will now take over from us,” Motolla said.
Local authorities said that hundreds of people were affected by the fire.
Several households at the Cemetery View informal settlement use paraffin for cooking, and it is suspected the fuel could have catalysed the inferno.
