MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The KwaNonqaba Police have opened an inquest after a man was found dead after a fire destroyed his home in Sexaxeni Street, KwaNonqaba, in the early hours of Saturday, 1 February.

The police received reports of a structure on fire just after 01:00.

KwaNonqaba Police Station spokesperson Warrant Officer Kappie Kapp said the cause of the fire and the man's death is unknown at this stage and is under investigation.

The man cannot be named until his next of kin have been informed.

Mossel Bay Municipality said there was another home that caught alight next near the KwaNonqaba industrial area at about 23:30 on Friday, 31 January.

It said that when Mossel Bay Fire, Rescue and Disaster Management Services responded to this fire, crew members were stoned by members of the community.

"As a result, the crew had to withdraw to a safe area until the South African Police Service and Municipal Law Enforcement unit arrived," said the municipality.

Kapp said the KwaNonqaba Police Station does not have any record of any complaints about the stoning of emergency services members but said officers would speak to community members regarding the importance of keeping members of emergency services safe and not damaging the equipment used by these services.

The municipality said it did not open a case with the police following the stoning as it is "self insured and therefore does not need a CAS [case] number from the SAPS to lodge an insurance claim should [damage] to property occur".

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