Ravensmead man arrested for arson after alleged family feud leaves 40 homeless

A Ravensmead man has been arrested for arson after an alleged family feud left 40 residents homeless on Monday.

Uitsig residents were left without a roof over their heads after a raging fire tore through backyard dwellings, destroying 10 structures and leaving families with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

One of the victims, Esmeralda Higgins, told the Cape Argus' sister newspaper, the Daily Voice that the blaze was allegedly started by the son of one of the residents, who threatened to burn his father’s house down. 

Higgins explained: “I got a call to say that our house is on fire. According to my brother, the fire started at the back of our house by the people at the back street.

“We are all backyarders who lost everything.

“This guy apparently argued with his father saying he was going to burn his pa’s house and he probably did and that’s how the fire escalated.”

Fire and Rescue spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said that the incident was reported at around 3.30pm on Monday.

Carelse said: “Crews from Belhar, Epping and Goodwood were on scene. By 5.10pm, firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze that destroyed an estimated 10 structures and left 40 persons displaced.

“No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is unknown.”

Higgins said that the father of the son did not come to apologise for the damages caused to the other mense. She added the community made a case against the suspect, however the father wants him to come back home.

She said she was very upset that no case was opened following the loss and disaster to all affected and that he did not apologise for his actions.

While the community has received some donations, Higgins said help has been slow to arrive and that collecting aid has been difficult because the area has been declared a red zone.

“We are grateful for anything, but it’s hard because we can’t move around easily and everything we owned is gone. We just want to rebuild and get our lives back," she said.

Police spokesperson Constable Ndakhe Gwala confirmed that Ravensmead police arrested a 21-year-old suspect for arson: “The suspect allegedly burned down his home in Azalea Avenue, Uitsig and the fire spread to neighbouring houses. He made his first court appearance in the Goodwood Magistrate’s court on Wednesday.”

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