Shack fires have displaced 300 families at Msawawa Informal Settlement.(SABC)
On Wednesday, a fire destroyed their homes which are built near Kya Sands, north of Johannesburg. No one was injured in the incident.
According to Msawawa residents, the fire started before midday in a nearby veld. They say they saw the fire approaching and mobilised makeshift fire fighting teams to fight the blaze.
Residents tried to douse the raging inferno to stop it from reaching the settlement by loading buckets with water from two communal taps.
It took firefighters more than four hours to extinguish the blaze. The windy conditions did not help matters. The task they were faced with proved difficult as the Msawawa informal settlement was erected far from any fire hydrants.
Fire trucks can only carry a limited amount of water and rely heavily on hydrants to replenish.
City of Joburg's Emergency Services spokesperson, Nana Radebe, says an irregular strategy had to implemented.
"We struggled because there are no hydrants in the area. The tanker had to go in and out. The engines had to link together. We made long hoses. Because the expertise were there - it became easier. There are no routes to go in here but the firefighters worked hard."
Aid organisations including the Gift of the Givers are working with government officials to facilitate shelter and food relief.
On Wednesday night, local retailer Shoprite set up a mobile soup kitchen to feed those affected by the fire. The mobile kitchen will also prepare breakfast on Thursday morning.
The Judah Afriika Church and Gift of the Givers have provided tents to house the displaced families.
The displaced families are now left with the task of rebuilding their lives. Many are concerned about where they'll find the money to buy the corrugated iron to build their homes.
School children and pupils are concerned about exams and the replacement of textbooks and study materials that were lost in the fire.
One mother says, "I'm worried about textbooks, the textbooks of my son from the college. They told us that if we lose them we will pay a lot of money. Now all of them got burnt. I pay R80 a day. I don't know."
One of many school learners from Msawawa informal settlement, who are now forced to figure out alternate ways to study for their year-end examinations without any study material says, "I don't know what to do because my books were burnt. We're writing English. Yes, I'm prepared. I'm going to sit down and write the exam because I want to pass."
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