Victims of several devastating fires which raged in Cape Town over the weekend have started to rebuild their lives.
At least 10 people were killed in three separate fires in informal settlements on Saturday which left thousands homeless.
Three people - a couple and their toddler - died in a blaze that broke out in Imizamo Yethu, Hout Bay, in the early hours.
In two other fires, four people - two adults and two children - were killed in Wesbank and in Kosovo, near Philippi, three men were killed.
Police said an investigation into the cause of the fires was under way.
In Hout Bay, firefighters battled for 12 hours to put out the blaze, assisted by firefighting helicopters, after fire engines ran out of water.
Yandisa Buqe said by the time the first fire engine arrived, residents had used buckets of water to try to save their homes, and their lives.
“The helicopters only arrived this morning,” he said.
The fire ripped through the informal settlement, leaving 3 500 shacks burnt to the ground and 15 000 homeless.
The houses are also built on a steep slope, and there are no pathways between the homes, making it difficult for the firefighting teams to reach the area.
It is not yet known what caused the fire.
Yesterday in Mandela Park in Imizamo Yethu, hopeless residents stood among burnt sheets of corrugated iron, rubble and ash, trying to save what they could.
Sipho Xhayiya, 29, says he is still in shock after his house was gutted. The petrol attendant says he and his wife were lucky to make it out alive.
“The fire spread so fast, we just needed to get out, there wasn’t time to grab anything,” the dad says.
“I lost important documents like my ID and pictures of my two children who stay in the Eastern Cape.”
Don Banda, 38, a handyman from Congo, who has been living in Mandela Park for more than 10 years, yesterday paid R3 000 to buy wood and iron sheets to rebuild his home.
“I am suffering, I spent the last of my money to buy new building materials.”
Sanele Mangaliso, 17, a Grade 9 pupil at Silikamva High School, lost all his school clothes and books in the fire.
“But I won’t let this affect my marks,” the determined teen said.
ANC councillor Bheki Hadebe claims the City has dragged its feet since 2007 in providing decent houses to the families.
He said three sites had been identified for housing projects but building operations were delayed due to the occupation.
Hadebe said the budget for the project had also been cut from an initial R6 million to only R1.6m which meant that not even 1 000 houses would now be built.
The City of Cape Town and aid organisation, Gift of the Givers, are assisting the fire victims in Imizamo Yethu with humanitarian aid.
Head of the organisation, Dr Imtiaz Sooliman, said they were doing everything they could to assist, but appealed for donations in the form of water, hot meals, food parcels, blankets, tents, clothing, building material, hygiene packs and other essentials.
Disaster Risk Management's Charlotte Powell says those affected are being housed at various community halls in the surrounding areas.
The City has also appealed to the public to open their hearts and donate non-perishable goods, baby nappies, baby formula and clothing.