‘Everything was burnt here’: Langa rebuilds after hundreds lose homes

Anelisa Nenete, 31, was in the Eastern Cape when she received the call nobody wants to get: “Your home has burnt down.”

She is one of nearly 800 inhabitants in Langa, Cape Town, who will remember this Easter weekend as the one when they lost everything they owned.

“We just had the clothes we were wearing. We lost our children’s certificates, ID documents, everything was burnt here. We are five in a house.”

Many shack dwellers are in dire need of building materials after a huge fire ravaged through two informal settlements on Saturday.

Others have managed to procure the basics, and on Easter Monday, another warm and mild but windy day in Cape Town, some were already rebuilding homes.

Others had already started painting, trying to create a sense of “home” for themselves and their children.

Ali Sablay from Gift of the Givers told Sunday Times Daily on Monday: “Our main concern is building materials. Cape Town is bracing for its winter season and the last thing we want is people to be out in the open as that will be yet another disaster.”

He said the fire occurred late on Saturday night and spread rapidly because of strong winds.

It was extinguished in the early hours of Sunday and followed another blaze in the area a few hours earlier that claimed the life of one man.

“All credit to the fire department for putting it out,” said Sablay. “It was not easy to contain it because of strong winds.”

He said registrations initially indicated that about 1,000 people had been displaced. Gift of the Givers teams have been on the ground since Sunday assisting with hot meals, water, bread, baby care packs, hygiene packs and toiletries.

They will remain in the area for three to five days before official assistance is allocated,  based on registered numbers of those affected.

The police, disaster risk management and provincial government, together with the City of Cape Town, are doing assessments on the ground to provide a report to the provincial government so a decision can be made on the “scope of the disaster” and whether it officially qualifies as a disaster site.

If it does qualify, government funding can be made available and “in that way building kits can be allocated to the affected families”, said Sablay.

Another major problem is that ablution facilities are “completely burnt out” as well as pipes that carry water.

“We are working with the department of water and sanitation to get those up and running,” said Sablay, “and people are trying to mop up the area in terms of solid waste and the debris lying outside.”

Acting Cape Town mayor Eddie Andrews said in an update statement that the disaster risk management centre and informal settlements management had completed the registration process, confirming that 260 structures were destroyed in the fire, affecting 767 individuals.

“This is lower than the initial estimates, and for that we are very grateful,” said Andrews.

“It has been challenging, but I commend everyone who has had a hand in extinguishing the fire and ensuring no lives were lost, and who have been on scene round the clock since to provide support and relief to the residents who have lost everything.

“The SA Social Security Agency (Sassa) and Gift of the Givers continue to provide humanitarian assistance in the form of meals and sanitary packs.”

In a previous statement by the city, it was indicated that toilets would be on site in Langa by Monday. However, the procurement is under way and toilets should be delivered later this week.

“A faith-based organisation has offered school stationery and clothing, to be delivered by the end of the week, and a local church has opened its doors to women and children during the day,” added Andrews.

The following drop-off points are available for donations:

• The Urban Rural Development (083 521 0328), City of Cape Town housing department, corner Langalibalele Drive and Lerotholi Avenue, Langa.

• Mustadafin Foundation (076 422 1667), corner of Heide and Antelope Court, Bridgetown.