Three dead and thousands homeless after shack fires

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 Shack fires on new year's day left 3 people dead and 4,000 homeless in Khayelitsha and Thembeni in the Western Cape.

The City of Cape Town's disaster management services says the blaze also damaged the overhead electricity supply.

Spokesperson, Wilfred Solomons-Johannes says 15 formal houses and another 220 shacks in Thembeni, and 120 shacks in Khayelitsha were destroyed.

He says a large contingent of public safety agencies from Disaster Risk Management, Fire & Rescue Services, Metro Emergency Medical Services, and the City's law enforcement agencies brought the flames under control.