An adult burnt to death in an early morning shack fire in Nyanga on Monday, City of Cape Town fire services said.

Spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said firefighters responded to a blaze in Matolengwe Crescent at 06:40. Two fire engines, a water tanker, a rescue vehicle and 14 staff members were dispatched.

Initially, it was thought to be a house on fire, but the team discovered that it was an informal structure which had been set alight, he said. One person was reported missing.

"A subsequent search of the property found an adult - gender unknown - [who] sustained fatal burn wounds," Carelse added.

The fire was extinguished shortly after 07:00. The cause is not yet known.

News24 reported on Sunday that three people were killed in early morning shack fires in the space of about five hours.

Firefighters were alerted to shacks which had been set alight in Scottsdene, Kraaifontein just after 00:00 on Sunday.

The fire was extinguished after 01:00. One man burnt to death.

A child was a casualty in another fire at Kosovo informal settlement in Philippi. The fire was extinguished just after 02:00.

Almost two hours later, at 03:45, numerous informal structures were on fire, again in Kosovo.

The fire was extinguished after 05:00.

One man was killed in the blaze.

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