Emergency services officials have begun evacuating parts of Knysna and other small towns‚ in the Western Cape as a massive fires raged late into the evening on Wednesday.

Up to 10 000 residents were forced to flee their homes in Knysna overnight as fires fuelled by storm winds ripped through the Western Cape coastal town.

The heartache of losing a home to natural disaster was repeated for hundreds of people. Insurances normally don't pay for natural disasters.

Hospitals are full and we don't have the same NHS service as in the UK. Medical fees are extremely expensive.

People left with only their clothes on their backs, kids, pets.

Hundreds of structures destroyed by the storm leaving people without homes or work.

Please friends, help those who are struggling in Knysna Cape Town South Africa. It is a small paradise - lost.

I have family and friend there affected and I hear their anguish, tears, vulnerability, uncertainty.

Help me to help those in desperate need.

I also want to ask for prayers and healing thoughts.

Number of deaths is 5 presently.