Rhodes Memorial blaze ‘caused by vagrant fire’
A BLAZE that gutted part of the Rhodes Memorial restaurant and vegetation at UCT yesterday is believed to have been caused by a fire started by vagrants, Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) said.
TMNP said wildfire crews from the Newlands Firebase were dispatched immediately to the Rhodes Memorial fire when it was reported at 9am.
TMNP spokesperson Babalwa Dlangamandla said: “After the initial investigation, it is surmised the origin is from a vacated vagrant fire. Due to the extreme Fire Danger Index for today (yesterday) – Red with temperatures of 36°C and an extremely low relative humidity of under 10% – the fire spread rapidly in the direction of Rhodes Memorial. One of the major contributors to the rapid rate of spread was the very old pine trees and their debris. The fire created its own wind that further increased the spread rate.
“The excessive amount of smoke made it impossible for the aerial support to slow the rate of spread.”
Working on Fire said they dispatched 58 firefighters, four choppers, and a spotter to assist TMNP’s efforts.
“Rhodes Memorial and some parts of Newlands were under extreme threat, and evacuations were under way. More Working on Fire members remain on high alert and ready to respond to the call to assist. Working on Fire choppers are taking turns waterbombing flames,” it said.
Working on Fire Western Cape general manager Melany Duthie-Surtie urged firefighters to remember the safety protocols they’d been trained in. “We urge the community to follow the guidelines from the authorities.”
UCT said students were evacuated from campus by emergency services support staff. “UCT will work with and support SANParks and the City of Cape Town (CoCT) to extinguish the fire,” the university said.