Emergency crews worked through the early hours of Thursday morning (22 January) to extinguish a raging fire which broke out in an open storage area at Strandfoam, off Broadlands Road. While the blaze was successfully contained the operation was marred by difficult weather and a hostile group of bystanders.
The fire, which started just before 15:00 yesterday (Wednesday 21 January), was located in an isolated storage section of the premises. According to Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson for the City of Cape Town’s Fire and Rescue Services, more than 50 firefighters and 12 front-line vehicles were deployed to bring the flames under control by approximately 01:15 on Thursday.
“Crews used a Compressed Air Foam System (CAFS) to battle the fire, a specialised method crucial for preventing the flames from spreading to the main factory buildings,” he pointed out. “Fortunately, none of the buildings were damaged and no injuries were reported.”
Firefighters faced more than just heat last night. A powerful south-easterly wind challenged containment efforts, but the situation turned dangerous when some bystanders began stoning the emergency responders. The local police was called in to secure the area and allow the fire crews to continue their work safely.
Despite the intensity of the night Strandfoam management confirmed in a statement this morning (Thursday) that the facility remained fully operational there were no reported injuries to staff or emergency personnel, and that no buildings were damaged during the incident.
“Operations are continuing as normal with no business interruptions,” the company said in a statement, and expressed its gratitude to the City of Cape Town’s fire services, police and Western Cape EMS for their rapid 20-minute response time.
Carelse confirmed that on Thursday morning two vehicles remained on site to monitor and douse remaining hot spots. The cause of the fire had not yet been determined.
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