Abahlali embarks on winter safety education drive
Shack dwellers' movement Abahlali baseMjondolo says it's difficult for residents in informal settlements to balance the need to keep warm with any possible safety concerns.
A weekend shack fire at Durban's Kennedy Road Informal Settlement killed a young mother and her 18-month-old baby.
eThekwini Municipality says more than 120 dwellings were destroyed.
Last month, residents from the same informal settlement had to evacuate after a blaze gutted dozens of homes.
Earlier this month, another fire destroyed over 120 homes at the Dakota Informal Settlement in Isipingo.
READ: Chatsworth shack fire kills two, displaces dozens
Abahlali's Thapelo Mahapi says while their movement's president has been on an education drive, winters are difficult for shack dwellers.
"This winter has been the most difficult one and people are actually trying by all means to keep themselves warm.
"The president was appealing to people that they should do so safely and ensure that those [makeshift heaters] are switched off and a fire that is made around the informal settlement because once one settlement gets banned because of the congestion, as a result of the lack of land that is available for people who are living formal settlement, the entire settlement is then caught in the fire."
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