Towering flames fanned by strong winds wreaked havoc across the Overberg on Monday, razing at least 10 structures and damaging a number of others.
By early Tuesday morning Theewaterskloof Municipality reported that firefighters had managed to contain the fires that had been raging in the Grabouw area and the situation was under control.
One house in the Klipkop suburb in Grabouw was gutted by flames.
The municipality stated: “While most fires have been extinguished, there are remnants of the fires in hot spots, especially in the forest areas. These remnants of the fire, however, are contained and burning away from properties, and do not pose a threat of spreading.
“The situation is under control and Overberg District Municipality fire services will deploy firefighters throughout the day to ensure all fires have been completely extinguished.
“The Theewaterskloof Municipality will continue to be on high alert and work with all agencies to ensure the safety of people and protection of properties.”
Firefighters worked tirelessly on Monday to extinguish and control multiple fires in Grabouw and surrounding areas. These included three major blazes along Worcester Road in Grabouw, behind the Grabouw Police Station, along the N2 in the direction of the Oude Brug farm and a number of smaller fires in and around Grabouw.
Overberg District Municipality had five bakkie sakkie units on scene, while Working On Fire had three teams with three strike units and two bakkie sakkie units on site. Aerial resources were also tapped into, while City of Cape Town deployed an additional fire truck and strike unit to help fight the fires on the border.
Theewaterskloof’s water truck, five Law Enforcement vehicles, three traffic vehicles and other support staff from TWK Municipality as well as Disaster Management were on scene throughout the day to assist residents and fire services.
TWK Deputy Mayor John Michels thanked everyone who assisted with the firefighting efforts, praising the community for standing together.
“Thank you to the farming community who got into their bakkies with water tanks and drove into town to assist,” he said. “Your efforts contributed to preventing total destruction. Assistance came from all quarters, proving once again that Grabouw’s community stands together,” he stated.
The municipality also thanked the many volunteers as well as the farmers from the area who availed tractor sprayers and bakkie sakkies to stop the fires from spreading.
Assessing damage
Residents of Betty’s Bay in the Overstrand were evacuated late Monday afternoon as a precautionary measure, but were allowed to return to their homes at approximately 20:30.
One external structure at the Hangklip Hotel burnt down while a number of others suffered extensive heat damage. Four structures located in the Sea Farm Private Coastal Nature Reserve, a short distance away, reportedly also burned down.
By Tuesday morning, crews were busy with mop-up operations along Hangklip Road while two helicopters water bombed the active fire line high in the mountain above Pringle Bay.
While the situation in the Hangklip area seemed to be mostly under control the fire that had been raging at Die Damme near Buffeljags since Monday was still burning out of control.
The structure at the entrance to the resort had burnt down, but O’Neill reported properties were safe and under no immediate threat.
He added the Buffeljags fire was still out of control in the Cape Agulhas Nature Park, that falls under the jurisdiction of the Overberg District Municipality, which was “actively fighting the fire in that area. The Overstrand will, from our side, only be mopping up along the perimeter and observing for flare-ups.”
TWK Municipality urged the public to remain cautious and on high alert as high temperatures are forecast for the remainder of the week. If you see a fire or smoke, contact the district fire department immediately on 028 425 1690 or the TWK Municipality’s toll-free Emergency Contact Centre on 080 021 4730.
Fires in the Overstrand area can be reported to the Overstrand Fire and Rescue Services on 028 313 8111/8170/8140/8137.
