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FIREFIGHTERS BATTLE TWO CAPE TOWN BLAZES
CAPE TOWN – Cape Town Fire and Rescue Services are battling two fires which broke out on Thursday afternoon – one on Signal Hill and another on the mountain slopes of Gordon’s Bay.
Both fires are being fanned by a strong south-westerly wind, filling the air with thick smoke.
There were 64 firefighters on the scene in Gordon’s Bay earlier on Thursday and three helicopters water bombing the area.
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As today is declared the hottest day in Cape Town’s recorded history the fire that began in the early hours of Sunday 1 March 2015 continues to ravage the mountain, with firefighters now battling over 14 separate fires.
Temperatures today reached 42 degrees Celsius, according to the Weather Office, making Cape Town the hottest it’s been in at least 100 years…and also the hottest place on the planet today. Officially.
Firefighters, many of whom are volunteers, continue to be the heroes in this disaster, putting their lives at risk for the sake of others. New dangers faced them today as the loss of vegetation in the Tokai Plantation area caused boulders to dislodge and roll down the mountain into their path.
www.sapeople.com...
originally posted by: IndependentOpinion
a reply to: Rezlooper
This is the second time something like this has happened. I believe it was 2 years ago, there was another fire that swept through that are, destrying entire estates. I remember because some i know had a house in one of those estates that got burner to the ground.
I think this brings in another question. Are the fire fighters in thr Cape area properly trained, and do they have the right toold for the job?
NEWS UPDATE
CAPE FIRE NOT ENTIRELY EXTINGUISHED
CAPE TOWN – Cooler weather conditions have brought much-needed relief for exhausted fire crews who’ve spent five days battling the blaze on the Southern Peninsula.
The massive wild fire broke out in the Muizenberg area on Sunday and quickly spread to surrounding suburbs.
While the fire has been largely contained, officials won’t be scaling back their operations just yet.
They’re keeping a close eye on a number of hot spots, including Tokai and Clovelly, anxious the winds will pick up and again fuel the flames.
Around 5,000 hectares of vegetation has been ravaged by the blaze that started in the mountains above Muizenberg at the weekend.
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UPDATE
CAPE FIRES: PILOT DIES IN HELICOPTER CRASH
CAPE TOWN – A helicopter assisting in efforts to extinguish a blaze in Cape Point in the Western Cape has crashed.
ER 24 has confirmed the pilot has not survived.
Working on Fire spokesperson Evelyn Holtzhausen, “The pilot was rushed off to hospital but unfortunately declared dead on arrival. He was involved in a fire suppression exercise.”
Firefighters have been containing a blaze and its flare-ups in the area ever since thunderstorms ignited vegetation on Wednesday.
Fire and Rescue’s Liesl Moodie has confirmed a Working on Fires helicopter fell this afternoon.
Authorities have reported to the scene.