Just after noon on Friday, 7 June, reports started coming in about a large veld fire affecting the power supply to Roodepoort, Krugersdorp and Randfontein.
The fire in question started in the veld beside the R28, opposite the first entrance to Kagiso, coming from Krugersdorp.
Watch the footage here:
Between 1pm and 3pm the fire slowly died down, becoming completely extinguished at certain points, until only a few smaller fires were left spread out over a couple of kilometres.
These fires were unfortunately located directly below overhead power lines that feed into most of the West Rand. Roodepoort, Krugersdorp and Randfontein experienced short power outages at certain stages. The power supply resumed after a few minutes each time though.
The Fire Department, Police and Eskom workers were on scene, making sure that the fires did not get out of hand, and checking that the power lines were still in working condition. Eskom employees on the scene noted that the fire and heat didn’t damage the cables, but that the trace amounts of metal in the thick, billowing black smoke interacting with the overhead lines may have caused short circuits of sorts.
As of 2.30pm, the fire has dwindled to a manageable state and, as a firefighter on scene noted, there is very little further danger. The power feed to the towns should also not be permanently affected, and normal supply will resume shortly.
