The smoke from the blaze could be seen from several miles away

Cape Town: Major Blaze Rips Through South Africa Parliament Building

A large fire is raging at the Houses of Parliament in the South African city of Cape Town. Video footage shows a plume of black smoke filling the sky, with huge flames coming out from the roof of the building.

Dozens of firefighters are at the site battling the blaze; it is not yet clear what caused the fire. It comes hours after Archbishop Desmond Tutu's state funeral at St George's Cathedral, near Parliament.

The roof area had caught fire and the National Assembly building was on fire too, the city authorities initially said.

Minister of Public Works Patricia de Lille later said the fire in the Chamber of the Council of Provinces (the parliament's upper house) had been contained, but the National Assembly building was still burning.

(Source: BBC)