China Town in Milnerton has gone up in flames.
Several shops at the mall in Sable Square caught fire late on Friday afternoon.
Flames spread rapidly and quickly blazed out of control.
It took firefighting teams from the Melkbos, Strand, Brooklyn, Epping and City Bowl areas several hours to bring the flames under control.
Quintin Rossi, the director of Fundamental Holdings, the owners of Sable Square, said the fire started in one of their stores.
Security noticed smoke coming out from a store at about 4.30pm, and raised the alarm.
Rossi said: “At approximately 4.30pm Friday afternoon, a fire broke out in the China Town portion of Sable Square. All emergency protocols and procedures kicked into gear and the scene along with large parts of the centre were evacuated.
“All attempts to fully extinguish the fire were unsuccessful. When Fire & Rescue services arrived on the scene the fire spread to a second section of China Town and started to burn more aggressively in certain areas.
“Fire crews managed to contain the blaze and we are grateful for the hard work and dedication shown by the various firefighters on the scene. The fire was contained and brought under control at about 11.30pm.”
Several shops were gutted. The cost of damages was still being calculated.
Fire and Rescue Services’ Theo Layne said no injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is still unknown.