By: Philile Radebe

An ederly woman was left devastated after a house fire at her home in KwaMakhutha Tuesday night.

Amanzimtoti Fire Department spent about two hours at the scene after they received an emergency call from the owner of the house.

Fire station commander Dave Petherbridge said that the cause of the fire was a candle that had tipped over onto a curtain.

Petherbridge said that Busisiwe Hadebe (72), who is the owner of the house, was in the kitchen when her 3-bedroom house burst caught alight.

“The old lady was in the kitchen when the fire occurred. The candle was in the master bedroom and it fell,” he said.

Hadebe escaped through the kitchen door and ran to get help.

Neighbour Bongiwe Dube, said that she heard Hadebe screaming for help.

“We did everything we could to stop the fire but the flames were difficult to handle,” she said.

Dube said Hadebe had been using candles for months now because her electricity was cut off and she also does not have running water because she cannot pay the bill.

Hadebe was taken to hospital to be treated for shock and the cause of the fire would be further investigated.