A tourist from Brighton has been accused of starting a deadly bush fire with a cigarette in South Africa.

Salesman Anthony Cooper, 36, faces charges of arson and culpable homicide after a 65-year-old woman, also British, died from smoke inhalation following the blaze on Table Mountain.

The fire spread so quickly, it left little time for emergency services to warn people they were facing one of the worst blazes ever to hit the area.

It devastated the popular tourist area and threatened some of Cape Town's plushest suburbs.

Cooper was released on bail of 3,000 rand (£276) at Cape Town Magistrates' Court and will appear in court again on March 31, local police spokeswoman Senior Superintendent Tummi Golding said.

Police have not named the victim.

More than 150 firefighters tackled the inferno which raged across the lower slopes of Table Mountain, above Cape Town's city bowl, and the nearby peaks of Lion's Head and Signal Hill.

Winds of up to 60 knots continued to pound the mountain yesterday but the fire was under control later, police said.

Some homes were evacuated and there were reports that others were damaged by the fires, which filled the city centre with smoke.

The 65-year-old British woman who died was a tourist out walking with her daughter. Information provided by her daughter is thought to have led to the arrest of the alleged arsonist.

Two British tourists were admitted to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The fire broke out near the cable car that transports hundreds of people daily up Table Mountain, one of South Africa's top attractions.

Fire officials said the blaze, fanned by howling winds, swept up Signal Hill, a popular tourist spot to view spectacular sunsets, and threatened to cross into the affluent Bantry Bay suburb on the coast.

A Foreign Office spokeswoman confirmed a British national had been killed in the fire.

She added: "We can confirm a British national has been helping police with their inquiries."

Fires are common in the area during the hot and dry season but the latest blaze has been by far the worst.