Martin Endjala
On Wednesday afternoon multiple shacks in the Aussenkehr informal settlement, primarily made of reed, were destroyed after a fire broke out in one of the houses.
According to a report provided by the Namibian Police, the blaze, driven by a strong wind, destroyed 72 shacks before the fire could finally be extinguished.
The cause of the fire at this point is not yet determined and an investigation in this regard has been launched.
Felicia Motinga the assigned Popular Democratic Movement party’s (PDM) chairperson in the Karas region confirmed to the Windhoek Observer that the fire broke out around 15h00.
“There were no injuries reported but most of the belongings of the people could not be salvaged because most of the people were at work,” she said.
She added that the community has been battling most of the afternoon to extinguish the fires.
“The other problem is, there is no fire brigade and whenever there is fire there is no way to put the fire out,” she said.
Motinga said people in the settlement told her that children were playing inside a house and the next thing the community saw was smoke before people started running to put out the flames.
Motinga said residents of Aussenkehr were promised decent houses a few years ago but this never materialised.
“Nothing is happening here. The people do not have sanitation structures, no electricity and no drinking water. When I asked why they did not have electricity, they said it was because of the zinc structures,” she said.
She is of the view that residents in the zinc house would get electricity for their houses.
It was believed that moving to better housing would encourage others to follow suit and those in reed houses would see the development and thereby also be compelled to move to the zinc houses.
“We are talking about electricity but there are no street lights, not even a single one. How are you addressing the issue of crime?” she asked.
She observed that during October-November when it is harvesting time more people flock to Aussenkehr for work.
This trend she said leads to overpopulation and with a lack of service delivery, she foresees another disaster on the way.
In a video shared with the Windhoek Observer, a resident is heard pleading for assistance.
“Aussenkehr. Oh my God. And it’s windy again, there is nothing we can do. Check how the fire is going. Oh my God. This is bad,” said the resident.
The Karas regional police commander, Commissioner Marius Katamelo, told the Windhoek Observer that at the time of the tragic incident, his team was still on the ground trying to extinguish the fire.
“The fire spread from shack to shack because of the strong wind. In the end, 72 reed houses were burned to ashes,” he said
According to Katamelo, residents lost belongings such as documents, food, clothes, blankets and matrasses and are currently stranded because they do not have places to sleep.
He said the fire was extinguished with the help of community members, police officers and water tank trucks from the grape farms.
He added that no serious injuries or fatalities were reported.
Thousands of people, some of them farm workers, live in the settlement.
