Fire trucks in Imizamo Yethu.
Image: Supplied
A firefighter was injured, and several Imizamo Yethu residents were left homeless after a fire tore through informal dwellings and spread to nearby vegetation on Tuesday, February 24.
The City of Cape Town's Fire and Rescue Service brought the blaze under control after it broke out around 4pm.
Fire and rescue service spokesman Mark Bosch said a call was received at 3.57pm regarding informal dwellings alight in Nelson Mandela Road, Imizamo Yethu.
"On arrival, crews got to work at extinguishing the dwelling fire; however, the fire spread to the vegetation behind the dwellings and up the mountain towards Penzance Road," he said.
Additional resources were requested, and the fire attack was split between tackling the structural fire and the expanding vegetation blaze.
Fire and Rescue Service had ten fire engines and three water tankers on the scene.
Mr Bosch confirmed that a firefighter sustained superficial burns to his face and was transported to a nearby medical facility for treatment.
Authorities confirmed that the vegetation fire had since been contained, with most resources now concentrated on extinguishing the remaining informal dwelling fire.
After 7pm Mr Bosch said the fire was contained.
"A formal assessment will be undertaken to determine the number of dwellings and persons affected by the fire," he said.
Firefighters will remain in the area to monitor hotspots.
The exact number of dwellings affected is unknown at this time.
Hout Bay activist Roscoe Jacobs has called for the City to "urgently make temporary accommodation available for families affected by the fire".
He said just like emergency personnel and community responders have acted swiftly under extremely difficult conditions, it was the responsibility of the municipality to ensure that "no family is left without shelter in the aftermath of this disaster".
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