informal settlement Archives - Voice of the Cape

Cape Town Fire and Rescue responds to almost 500 fires since May

By Lee-Yandra Paulsen Since the start of May, the City of Cape Town's Fire and Rescue Department has responded to almost 500 fire-related incidents. Speaking on VOC Breakfast on Monday morning, Fire and Rescue spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said his department has been inundated with reports of both formal and informal fires. “We have seen an uptick in fire-related reports in the past month. We’ve responded to about 255 informal structure […]

24 June 2024

Local

Kraaifontein informal settlement rocked by mass shooting

By: Aneeqa du Plessis Days after the provincial crime stats were released for the third quarter of 2022, yet another mass shooting has rocked Wallacdene, Kraaifontein, where four men were gunned down in an informal settlement on Tuesday evening. According to SAPS, officials were called out to an informal settlement in Wallacedene at 20h00 where they found the bodies of four men riddled with bullets. The deceased persons are […]

23 February 2023

Local

Mfuleni informal settlement rocked by killings

The bodies of two couples were found fatally wounded in an Mfuleni informal settlement yesterday. According to SAPS Spokesperson Novela Potelwa, a vehicle entered the Covid-19 informal settlement at 23h00 on Wednesday evening and shortly after gunshots were heard. Subsequently, residents found the four bodies on Thursday morning in two different dwellings. The identities of the victims are yet to be determined and the motive for the murders is yet […]

3 February 2023

Local

Phillipi community face yet another tragedy as fire rips through informal settlement

By: Aneeqa du Plessis Not even a week after a fire ripped through the Phola Park Informal settlement in Phillipi, killing a woman and leaving hundreds displaced, residents have had to brace themselves for yet another tragedy after over 100 informal dwellings were destroyed in a blaze shortly after 14h00 on Thursday afternoon. Community member residing in the informal settlement, Samkelo Sokweni, 40, said they were alerted to the blaze […]

6 January 2023

News

Law Enforcement Anti Land officials arrest suspect with illegal gun

LOCAL A man was arrested for the possession of an unlicensed firearm in Athlone yesterday. This comes after Law Enforcement Anti Land Invasion officers spotted the suspect trying to evade officials who were attending to a complaint in the area. Officers gave chase and caught the suspect before he could enter an informal structure in the K@kgat informal settlement. According to the City of Cape Town, the man attempted to […]

3 November 2022

News

Hadji Ebrahim informal settlement fire victims still without starter-kits, two weeks on

Two weeks ago, a fire ravaged through the Hadji Ebrahim informal settlement in Belgravia, Athlone. The fire believed to have been started by a candle, killed one person and displaced over 120. However, since then, occupants have not received starter-kits to help rebuild their homes. This is due to the reallocation of monies brought on by the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Mayco member for community services and health, […]

3 March 2021

News

Local imam laments lack of urgency in the search for missing Vygieskraal girl

The body of the 8-year-old girl that fell into the canal at the Vygieskraal informal settlement in Athlone has not yet been retrieved, despite an extensive search over the past few days. It has been just under a week since little Abieda Steenkamp was washed away in the canal under severe rainy conditions, while she was playing at the banks of the canal with a group of her friends. The […]

14 July 2020

News

The Chronicles of Cathkin Village

It’s been just under two years since the informal settlement known as Cathkin Village was erected. The village sits adjacent to Cathkin High School. The land was a vacant plot off of Fifth Street in Heideveld. The people occupying the land are mostly elderly. Some pensioners have been on the City of Cape Town’s housing data base for over thirty years. There is no running water. There is no electricity. […]

23 January 2020

News

‘Anti-eviction officials must observe the law’: activists

By Zaahidah Meyer Violent protests are on the rise in the Western Cape, with most of it being due to insufficient land and housing. The City of Cape Town’s Anti-Land Invasion Unit has already removed 26 000 illegal structures this year, almost doubling the amount of illegal structures removed last year. Head of organising at Ndifuna Ukwazi movement, Nkosikhona Swartbooi says that people are tired of waiting for government to […]

16 July 2018

informal settlement

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