Cape Town - A Mitchells Plain family is grieving after losing a grandmother in a house fire that also left seven people seriously injured.
Neighbours and family members tried to rescue the 65-year-old woman around 2am on Tuesday, but the flames had already engulfed the home.
Survivor Shakeer Yon, 22, said they had attended a function earlier that night, and everything appeared normal when the family turned in for the night.
“My room is at the back of the yard, and around 2am I heard my mother shouting.
“I quickly ran into the house. I heard windows shattering and I thought there was someone throwing stones at the house. When I got to the front I noticed that the dining room and kitchen were burning.
“I couldn’t reach the front door because the fire was already strong.
“We tried to take everyone out of the house but when we were outside I noticed that my grandmother was not around.
“When I tried to run back to the house the fire brigade couldn’t allow me to go back inside,” he said.
“I don’t feel comfortable to speak about the incident because I lost my grandmother. The more I speak about it, the more it traumatises me.”
A witness, Sharlena Maart, said she heard people screaming that there was fire, and when she ran outside the fire was out of control.
“I quickly ran out to see what was happening, and when I got there, the fire was already huge.
“We tried by all means to fight the fire but we couldn’t because it was out of hand already.”
Fire and rescue spokesman Theo Layne confirmed that a woman died in the fire.“One dwelling was severely damaged and the causes of the fire are not yet determined,” said Layne.
Police spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Andre Traut said an inquest docket had been opened into the death of the grandmother.