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16 February 2024
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House burns down, roads closed as firefighters respond to another fire in Kalk Bay, Cape Town
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A wildfire broke out on Boyes Drive in Kalk Bay on Monday 12 February 2024. Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson, City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service, said four aerial resources assisted with water bombing, while several ground crews from Table Mountain National Park (TMNP), Working on Fire (WoF), NCC and VWS worked tirelessly throughout the day and night. At the urban fringe, residential area, the firefighters were busy with exposure protection. 16 pumpers were on scene, supported by six water tenders, several skid units, rescue vehicles, a bush tender, command vehicle and a rescue unit. “The call was received at approximately 14h20 with active firefighting until containment, followed by sporadic flare ups”, said Carelse.
The fire was fuelled by dry and hot conditions including unusually hot winds. More than 40 City of Cape Town firefighters were on the ground, battling to contain the fire, while four helicopters, assisted by a spotter plane, water-bombed it. At 17h00, they were still hard at work.
“A one formal dwelling was damaged in Godfrey Road. No one sustained injuries from the City staff. Challenges faced included the extreme weather conditions accompanied by the wind and heat, which made firefighting efforts challenging.
The fire started just south of where the previous Kalk Bay fire, on 17 January 2024, began.
Carelse, said, “No persons have been evacuated from their homes as crews are strategically placed to cover the residential area.”
Boyes Drive and Old Boyes Drive, Kalk Bay Main Road and Clairvaux Road were closed to traffic.
Carelse reported that after 20h00, the fire had mostly been contained but active firefighting efforts were ongoing with ground crews tirelessly working on the fireline throughout the night.
The aerial support had been providing crucial aid to the ground teams, with 20 firefighting resources deployed across the fire area. Carelse further mentioned that the Incident Command Post had been established at Kalk Bay Harbour to offer strategic assistance.
The South African Weather Service (Saws) has warned that extremely high fire danger conditions are expected for Tuesday, 13 February 2024, over the western and southern parts of Northern Cape, northeastern parts of Western Cape, central and southwestern parts of Free State and the western parts of Eastern Cape.
A fierce Western Cape fire season
This year’s fire season in the Western Cape, which began on 1 December 2023, has been notable for the many fierce and large wildfires that have blazed in the province. Between 1 December and 31 January, 6 429 wildfires ignited in the province with an estimated total of 103 262 hectares of land burnt.
Since 1 December, the Western Cape government has spent more than R19-million on firefighting efforts.
On 1 February 2024, the provincial government sought assistance from the National Disaster Management Centre to declare the wildfires in the province a provincial disaster. This declaration would grant the premier and the minister of finance the authority to reallocate funds as needed to sustain firefighting operations.
Last month, the Kluitjieskraal fire, the largest wildfire recorded in the Western Cape this year, ravaged the mountainous landscape of the Breede River Valley. Originating southeast of Wolseley on 22 January 2024, it rapidly spread across 27 200 hectares over 11 days.
Sources: Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson, City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service; Daily Maverick; Simon McDonnell
The fire was fuelled by dry and hot conditions including unusually hot winds. More than 40 City of Cape Town firefighters were on the ground, battling to contain the fire, while four helicopters, assisted by a spotter plane, water-bombed it. At 17h00, they were still hard at work.
“A one formal dwelling was damaged in Godfrey Road. No one sustained injuries from the City staff. Challenges faced included the extreme weather conditions accompanied by the wind and heat, which made firefighting efforts challenging.
The fire started just south of where the previous Kalk Bay fire, on 17 January 2024, began.
Carelse, said, “No persons have been evacuated from their homes as crews are strategically placed to cover the residential area.”
Boyes Drive and Old Boyes Drive, Kalk Bay Main Road and Clairvaux Road were closed to traffic.
Carelse reported that after 20h00, the fire had mostly been contained but active firefighting efforts were ongoing with ground crews tirelessly working on the fireline throughout the night.
The aerial support had been providing crucial aid to the ground teams, with 20 firefighting resources deployed across the fire area. Carelse further mentioned that the Incident Command Post had been established at Kalk Bay Harbour to offer strategic assistance.
The South African Weather Service (Saws) has warned that extremely high fire danger conditions are expected for Tuesday, 13 February 2024, over the western and southern parts of Northern Cape, northeastern parts of Western Cape, central and southwestern parts of Free State and the western parts of Eastern Cape.
A fierce Western Cape fire season
This year’s fire season in the Western Cape, which began on 1 December 2023, has been notable for the many fierce and large wildfires that have blazed in the province. Between 1 December and 31 January, 6 429 wildfires ignited in the province with an estimated total of 103 262 hectares of land burnt.
Since 1 December, the Western Cape government has spent more than R19-million on firefighting efforts.
On 1 February 2024, the provincial government sought assistance from the National Disaster Management Centre to declare the wildfires in the province a provincial disaster. This declaration would grant the premier and the minister of finance the authority to reallocate funds as needed to sustain firefighting operations.
Last month, the Kluitjieskraal fire, the largest wildfire recorded in the Western Cape this year, ravaged the mountainous landscape of the Breede River Valley. Originating southeast of Wolseley on 22 January 2024, it rapidly spread across 27 200 hectares over 11 days.
Sources: Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson, City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service; Daily Maverick; Simon McDonnell
