Canada call-up for Port Alfred-based firefighter
Mdladlamba battles British Columbian blazes
Fighting wildfires in Canada for a month was a real eye opener for Port Alfredbased firefighter Mzimkhulu Mdladlamba.
The fourth group of SA firefighters from the department of forestry, fisheries, and the environment’s Working on Fire programme recently returned from deployment in the province of British Columbia, Canada, where they helped fight widespread wildfires.
Mdladlamba was part of an earlier deployment of South Africans to Canada. He spoke to Talk of the Town about his experience there.
“It’s nice but it can be challenging at times working in this field,” Mdladlamba, who is the senior crew leader of Working on Fire in Port Alfred, said.
“Going to Canada was a very different experience: it was my first time having to go out for deployment in a different country. Leaving my family
behind, leaving almost everything behind was quite challenging. We had to adjust to working alongside different people from all parts of the world in achieving one goal,” Mdladlamba said.
“One of the things I have learnt was the importance of discipline and how important it is to be safe: there, they do not play with anyone’s safety,” Mdladlamba said.
“The obstacles I had to overcome in Canada were the
different working hours. In SA, we are expected to work eight hours a day on average; in Canada we worked 14 hours a day, which was challenging and tested our physical health.
“The environment definitely was not the same as back home but I did manage to adapt and did what I had to do,” he said.
What impressed him the most?
“Equipment like none we have seen before in our branch — I was really impressed,” he
said. “Nonetheless I couldn’t wait to go home.”
In a media release, Working on Fire Kishugu joint venture said they had executed four deployments since June 2023, totalling 860 firefighters and management personnel, to Canada, during one of the most severe wildfire seasons in history.
Canada had recorded more than 6,330 fires this year, resulting in the destruction of over 17 million hectares of land.
“The deployment of SA wildland firefighters to Canada was a response to a request for assistance from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) based on the existing memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed between Canada and SA in 2019.
“This MOU allows for the exchange of wildland fire management resources between the two countries,” WoF Kishugu spokesperson Amanda Mthembu said.