Forum calls for extra powers to combat fires in Drakenstein municipality
HUMAN error has been cited as the cause for the fires that ravaged the Wellington and Paarl area last year, according to Drakenstein Farm Watch.
The non-profit organisation said these had not been investigated by the Drakenstein Municipality.
This followed a video shared by the organisation, whose members attended to a fire in the old mountain pass road of Mount Wellington last week.
They came upon candles burning in the bushes and saw men fleeing from the scene.
The watch, consisting of 120 members monitoring the rural area in the region, respond to cases such as fire fighting, safety and security, medical response, animal rescue and evacuation, said its chairperson Daan van Leeuwen Boomkamp.
He said there had been 96 fires last year, amounting to damage worth R186 million, and thus far this year there had already been 30 fires.
“Fires in the rural area are attended to by the Cape Winelands Fire Department situated in Stellenbosch and not the Drakenstein Fire Department. We told the municipality that many of the fires were because of human fault. They have never investigated these incidents and our members have come across individuals making open fires in the mountain areas,” said Van Leeuwen Boomkamp.
He said religious groups and other residents were making use of fires for various reasons and for the past three years they had been asking for peace officer status from the municipality, which would allow them to hold individuals accountable.
Drakenstein Municipality community services executive director Gary Boshoff said fires started by people – whether wilfully or unintentionally – fell into the scope of police investigation .
He said the Drakenstein Municipality was investigating the possibility of awarding peace officer status and other forms of accreditation in the future.
“It will do so within the context of the Drakenstein Smart Safety Network, founded six weeks ago, and the municipality is working closely with the City of Cape Town and the Cape Winelands District Municipality in this regard, and has invited Drakenstein Farm Watch to join us in this effort,” said Boshoff.
Meanwhile, firefighters continued battling the the fire which broke in Gansbaai on Friday.
Firefighters from the Overstrand, Overberg, Cape Winelands and West Coast District Municipalities along with the City of Cape Town had been sent to the area to try to contain the blaze.
Overstrand fire chief Lester Smith said: “We have 18 vehicles and 70 firefighters fighting the blaze, with two ground teams from NCC Wildfire and Working on Fire.
“The fire has not been contained, but it has been directed towards the mountain area and the sea, away from residential areas – and we are monitoring hotspots and putting out flareups,” said Smith.
He said there had been no loss of life, and the roads between Gansbaai and Pearly Bay would remain closed as windy conditions and temperatures could result in further flare-ups.