A house fire that swallowed a Newcastle home on Sunday also claimed the life of a four year-old boy.
The cause of the fire is unknown and still under investigation.
Disaster management team were deployed by the co-operative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) department in KwaZulu-Natal to investigate the circumstances behind the fire.
They were also assigned to provide support to the displaced family in the Osizweni area in KwaZulu-Natal.
“We are heartbroken as a result of this incident in which we lost a very young child.”
“Just last month our teams responded to a similar incident in Ladysmith in which we lost three children and their grandmother as a result of a fire.
“As a department, we will be co-ordinating with the municipality to ensure adequate support is provided to the family,” said Cogta MEC Sipho Hlomuka.
He urged members of communities to be careful with their appliances and not to leave appliances, such as heaters, unattended to especially when children are around.
