21 animals perish in Farmyard fire

The owner of the Farmyard at Casterbridge estimates close to R1m’s worth of damages to the property following a fire that broke out on Sunday evening.

Constable Funeka Mathebula, the spokesperson for the White River SAPS, said a case of arson has been opened and an investigation is currently under way.

Lowvelder sat down with Melanie Dingle at the Farmyard, mere metres from the carnage that was left of the main building. A number of energy drinks stood on the table, as few members of the Dingle family had had much sleep since the fire.

At 21:37 on September 25, she received the life-changing call from Quinton de Cruz of ER24.

“He drove past there on his way to a scene and saw something orange.” When he realised it was a fire, he phoned the fire department and then herself, she said.

“I was just busy painting our house. After the call I shouted to everyone, ‘The farm is burning, the farm is burning!'”

From there everyone got into vehicles and made their way to Casterbridge to save what they could; she in her plakkies with some children in one vehicle and her husband barefoot with the rest in another.

Dingle’s children are homeschooled at the Farmyard and also lend a helping hand there on occasion – truly a family-run place they all care about deeply.

This meant it was all hands on deck to save what could be saved.

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On their way to the fire, Dingle alerted some of her neighbours on a WhatsApp group, and from there the news spread. Eventually it was a whole community effort to extinguish the fire and save the animals.

“People took buckets and dustbins and got water from the little dam to wet the cages.”

Although 21 animals died in the fire, the rest could luckily be saved, or were not in danger. The Farmyard houses chinchillas, rabbits, guinea pigs, horses, ponies, goats, and many more.

Among those that died were parrots, rats, chickens, hedgehogs, hamsters, a snake and a bearded dragon.

Of the animals that were rescued, some went to the SPCA, some to Lowveld Vet, and others to Dingle’s home.

“My house is full of animals! Basically different species in every room.”

Dingle and her husband spent the evening at the Farmyard to keep an eye on everything for fear that something else might catch fire. It was only by about 16:00 on Monday that the wood stopped smouldering.

Although not everything burnt down, the main building was severely damaged. This consists of the office, kitchen, restaurant and shop. Here they had documents, laptops, various kitchen and other equipment, stock, food and more. Because Dingle is still in the process of buying over the property, it was not yet insured.

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She admitted to feeling hopeless and unsure of their next step, but she refuses to give up.

One thing among the heaps of charred belongings, which only had its sides burnt, was a book of daily devotions. Seeing this book largely untouched gave her hope, and the words on the top page even more so. They read: “Kan God van jou vergeet?”, which translates to “Can God forget about you?”

Dingle herself has many dependants, and especially children who consider this place a safe haven. Not to mention her staff who also have to support their families.

“I can’t say I can’t – I have to,” she said about the way forward.

If you would like to assist the Farmyard on its road to recovery in any way, contact Dingle on 071 240 1005.

Dingle said a heartfelt thank you to each and every person who came to their aid in their time of need.