{"id":55393,"date":"2023-10-06T18:07:02","date_gmt":"2023-10-06T18:07:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity"},"modified":"2023-10-06T18:17:23","modified_gmt":"2023-10-06T18:17:23","slug":"mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity","title":{"rendered":"Mix\u2019s shack fires linked to lack of electricity"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Namibia. <\/strong><\/span>The lack of electricity provision at Windhoek\u2019s Mix informal settlement has been linked to frequent shack fires breaking out in the area, with the most recent fire claiming the lives of three children.<\/p>\n

In an interview with Nampa on Tuesday, community leader Jonas Nghifikwa said there have been three shack fires in the informal settlement so far this year.<\/p>\n

The lack of electricity connectivity for households in the settlement cannot be ruled out as a contributory factor, as residents resort to using alternatives such as firewood, gas stoves, candles and paraffin lamps.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter pleading all these years, the municipality only provided the community with street lights last year, but that is not enough. Residents want electricity for daily usage, and in that way, perhaps the incident of shack fires can come to an end,\u201d said Nghifikwa.<\/p>\n

Johanna Sikunda, an aunt of the three minors who died after the shack they were sleeping in caught fire on 24 September 2023, stressed that electricity provision is crucial for households, especially those in the informal settlements where houses are made of flammable materials, leading to fire hazards.<\/p>\n

\u201cLack of electricity is really a problem. It would be nice if the municipality or NamPower can at least provide us with electricity here. They keep promising, but they never deliver,\u201d she lamented.<\/p>\n

Sikunda said Magdalena Hamwanyena (7), Verdiano Hanghome (10), and Michael Shinyama (2) were asleep when fire broke out around 02h00. Their mother and two older sisters were at a neighbour\u2019s house.<\/p>\n

She said the cause of the fire is still unknown, and police investigations continue. Another shack caught fire just a few metres from theirs on 25 September 2023.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe don\u2019t know how that fire started… We just know how it ended. It is not easy to cope with the death of somebody who was dear to you. It is going to be difficult to forget hearing your children screaming \u2018Mom!\u2019<\/p>\n

until their voices go quiet while you stand there helplessly,\u201d she narrated.<\/p>\n

Sikunda said the family of seven lost everything in the shack fire, and they have been receiving donations from community members, including the City of Windhoek (CoW), which provided the tent they currently stay in.<\/p>\n

CoW spokesperson Harold Akweenye said the municipality is conducting a pre-feasibility study to identify the most appropriate off-grid solution to advance the settlement\u2019s electrification plan, along with establishing a potential implementation timeline. He stated that the municipality faces challenges like limited existing infrastructure, budgetary constraints, and logistical complexities associated with providing electricity to remote areas.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are deeply concerned about the safety of Mix settlement residents, and we acknowledge that the lack of electricity can contribute to shack fires and accidents. It is our priority to address this issue, and provide a reliable source of electricity to enhance safety and quality of life for the residents,\u201d said Akwenye.<\/p>\n

A recent City Council meeting passed a resolution to electrify 4 000 informal dwellings over the next five years, commencing this year, with an estimated budget of between N$15 million to N$20 million per year.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Namibia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Namibia. The lack of electricity provision at Windhoek\u2019s Mix informal settlement has been linked to frequent shack fires breaking out in the area, with the most recent fire claiming the lives of three children. In an interview with Nampa on Tuesday, community leader Jonas Nghifikwa said there have been three shack fires in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":55392,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3],"tags":[234,236,233],"class_list":["post-55393","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-namibia","tag-namibia"],"yoast_head":"\nMix\u2019s shack fires linked to lack of electricity - Namibia<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The lack of electricity provision at Windhoek\u2019s Mix informal settlement has been linked to frequent shack fires breaking ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Mix\u2019s shack fires linked to lack of electricity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The lack of electricity provision at Windhoek\u2019s Mix informal settlement has been linked to frequent shack fires breaking ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Namibia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-10-06T18:07:02+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-10-06T18:17:23+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nambia\/sites\/29\/2023\/10\/sm_1696603379.880329.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"486\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Mix\u2019s shack fires linked to lack of electricity\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-10-06T18:07:02+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-10-06T18:17:23+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\"},\"wordCount\":524,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/nambia\/sites\/29\/2023\/10\/sm_1696603379.880329.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"africa press\",\"Africa Press-Namibia\",\"namibia\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/namibia\/all-news\/mixs-shack-fires-linked-to-lack-of-electricity\",\"name\":\"Mix\u2019s shack fires linked to lack of electricity - 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