Cape firefighters battling against the odds

Cape Fire burns on the Southern slopes of the Cape mountain range. Pic Jacques Unshakable West

Its day three and still they persevere, the Cape fire-fighters have been battling a blaze that started in Muizenberg and traversed the mountain across Silvermine Reserve and Ou Kaapse Weg to Hout Bay, Chapmans Peak along the spine of the Table Mountain Nature reserve to Tokai Forest.

The fire above Noordhoek

Reports suggest that if this fire runs its current course the forest range in Silvermine and Tokai will be completely devastated before the flames are doused. Residents in Monkey Valley, Noordhoek and Tokai were evacuated from their homes yesterday as the fire services battled the blaze, five homes were destroyed by the blaze in Noordhoek.

Firefighters battling the blaze

Inaccessible mountainous terrain have made the task of fighting this fire even more difficult as hot dry summers and wind is assisting this fire to spread across much of the South Western Cape mountain range.

Relays of firefighting helicopters have been on duty since Sunday – pic Greg Hillyard

Relays of firefighting helicopters have been on duty since Sunday, as well as local fire fighters and volunteers from Working on Fire (WOF) and the Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) based at Newlands Forest have been battling this huge blaze. Fire fighters have been flown in from as far as the Eastern Cape to assist local fire fighters. Members of the public have supplemented their ranks joining in the fight to control the blaze.

News just in, Pick n Pay branches across the City have donated a number of necessities for those fighting the blaze, with donations of water, rehydrate, sunscreen, lip-ice, hand-wipes, talcum powder, sunscreen, savlon cream, eye-drops, energy bars, citrus soda and food parcels.

Donations at the Lakeside Fire Station – pic Janine Nagel

The Western Cape Government, Disaster Management, Fire Rescue Services, Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) and Working on Fire (WOF) are however working around the clock to bring this mountain fire under control.

The Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) have been combating dangerous and often deadly runaway fires since the devastating fires in 1999 / 2000 in Cape Town.

The general public however should note that unless they can assist, to stay off the roads in and around the fire zone to ensure that the fire fighters can work unhindered by spectators hoping to catch a closer view of the fire.

The danger is apparent as this fire has already jumped gullies and roads; spreading in all directions, fanned by the wind.

We, the residents of Cape Town appreciate the efforts of all the fire fighters, volunteers, people who have donated goods and those who have set-up refreshment stations at various points along the mountain.

Note: The Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) have been combating dangerous and often deadly runaway fires since the devastating fires in 1999 / 2000 in Cape Town.

The VWS has 180 members at three stations (Newlands, Jonkershoek and the newly developing South Peninsula Station), and working closely with other emergency service organisations in wild-land fire management such as Table Mountain National Park, Cape Nature, Cape Town Fire & Emergency Services, Disaster Management, Winelands Fire Brigade, Stellenbosch Fire Brigade and Working on Fire has meant that the VWS has, to date, achieved over 39,000 active firefighting hours between its members and stations.

 

Fire Safety Tips and Rules (http://www.westerncape.gov.za)

• General Safety Rules:
  • ​Keep a well-maintained fire extinguisher in your house, and know how to use it.
  • If you have a garden hose, keep it rolled up and ready in case of a fire.
  • Where possible, have more than one exit from your house.
  • Have an escape plan, and make sure that the whole family knows the plan.
  • Do not park in the way of a fire hydrant (and remind your neighbours and visitors to do the same).

Safety around an Open Flame:

• • Keep matches and lighters out of children’s reach.
  • Cut candles in half to prevent them falling over and use a candle holder.
  • Never leave an open fire – for example around a braai – unattended.
  • Do not let open fires, like a braai, get too big and out of control.
  • Monitor weather conditions. If the wind is strong, rather put the fires out until the wind calms.
• What if a fire breaks out in my house?
  • Warn people inside the house to get out safely.
  • Help people to get out and stay out of harm’s way.
  • If there is a lot of smoke, crawl out below the smoke to escape the fire.
  • Where possible, have more than one exit from your house, with clear routes to the door.

For more tips on how to prevent fires, you can visit the Fire and Rescue Services at the City of Cape Town’s webpage.

When reporting fires, please contact your Local District Municipality

• City of Cape Town: 107 or 021 480 7700 from a cellphone
• Overberg: 028 425 1690
• West Coast: 022 433 8700
• Eden: 044 805 5071
• Central Karoo: 023 414 2603
• Cape Winelands: 021 887 4446

 

Be sure to save the appropriate number on your cellphone and to teach it to your children.

 

Fire season razes the Cape

Its summer in Cape Town and with temperatures hitting the high 30’s and 40+ in some areas of the Western Cape it’s a perfect time to hit the many beaches in the Cape Peninsula but spare a thought for the for the firefighters of the Cape for whom its “High Season”.

A helicopter water bombs a bush fire on the Cape Flats.

On December 01, 2014 the Western Cape Fire Services officially launched Western Cape Summer Fire Season

Hot dry summers and high wind speeds across much of the Western Cape, causing wild fires to spread quickly and easily.

Fire fighters fight a township blaze.

With this in mind, the Western Cape Government, Disaster Management, Fire Rescue Services and Working on Fire (WOF) spent the winter months training to combat the many fires expected to raze the Cape this summer.

A fire in Hout Bay as seen from Wynberg, Cape Town.

At risk is the green belt of the Table Mountain Nature Reserve as well as the dry plains of the Cape Flats.

The mountain above Simonstown and Signal Hill have witnessed the most devastating bush fires in the Western Cape recently. Also in the mix are the many fires in our local townships that leave destruction and devastation in its wake.

On the morning of January 08, 2015, a fire broke out on Cape Town’s Signal Hill, the city’s fire and rescue department worked around the clock to contain the blaze finally damping the area before lunch time.

Days later on January 19, local firefighters battled 14 fires across the Western Cape, the largest blazes were in Steenberg, Strandfontein and Atlantis. Helicopters were called in to douse the fires with 76 firemen and 52 fire fighters of the Table Mountain National Park. They used 11 fire engines and four water tankers to prevent it from spreading.

Last year a candle started the fire that caused 25 shacks to burn down in Imizamo Yetho informal settlement in Hout Bay leaving many people homeless.

It’s been proved that 90% of fires are caused by human negligence, by being prepared and taking the correct precautions this high percentage can be reduced significantly.

The Volunteer Fire Services based at the Newlands Forestry Station

The Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) have been combating dangerous and often deadly runaway fires since being baptized through the devastating fires in 1999 / 2000 in Cape Town. With approximately 180 members at three stations (Newlands, Jonkershoek and the newly developing South Peninsula Station).

Working closely with other emergency service organization’s in wild-land fire management such as Table Mountain National Park, Cape Nature, Cape Town Fire & Emergency Services, Disaster Management, Winelands Fire Brigade, Stellenbosch Fire Brigade and Working on Fire has meant that the VWS has, to date, achieved over 39,000 active fire-fighting hours between its members and stations. For more info go to; http://www.vws.org.za.

Fire Safety Tips and Rules (http://www.westerncape.gov.za)

• General Safety Rules:
  • ​Keep a well-maintained fire extinguisher in your house, and know how to use it.
  • If you have a garden hose, keep it rolled up and ready in case of a fire.
  • Where possible, have more than one exit from your house.
  • Have an escape plan, and make sure that the whole family knows the plan.
  • Do not park in the way of a fire hydrant (and remind your neighbours and visitors to do the same).

• Safety around an Open Flame:
  • Keep matches and lighters out of children’s reach.
  • Cut candles in half to prevent them falling over and use a candle holder.
  • Never leave an open fire – for example around a braai – unattended.
  • Do not let open fires, like a braai, get too big and out of control.
  • Monitor weather conditions. If the wind is strong, rather put the fires out until the wind calms.
• What if a fire breaks out in my house?
  • Warn people inside the house to get out safely.
  • Help people to get out and stay out of harm’s way.
  • If there is a lot of smoke, crawl out below the smoke to escape the fire.
  • Where possible, have more than one exit from your house, with clear routes to the door.

For more tips on how to prevent fires, you can visit the Fire and Rescue Services at the City of Cape Town’s webpage.

When reporting fires, please contact your Local District Municipality

• City of Cape Town: 107 or 021 480 7700 from a cellphone
• Overberg: 028 425 1690
• West Coast: 022 433 8700
• Eden: 044 805 5071
• Central Karoo: 023 414 2603
• Cape Winelands: 021 887 4446

Be sure to save the appropriate number on your cellphone and to teach it to your children.