Province’s firefighters ready to face the heat
The 2017 winter fire season was officially launched at Mpumalanga Provincial Disaster Management on Friday morning, but Sappi's Duane Roothman warned that proper fire prevention should take place every day of the year.
MBOMBELA – “Today is not the start of the season; it is to create awareness. As we speak, California is burning. Sixty people recently lost their lives in Portugal. Almost 10 years ago, Sabie lost millions in irreparable damage to the economy,” he said.
“Let us take hands, keep doing the right things and utilise our resources to make sure we don’t look back in another 10 years at a similar incident.”
The fire season, which typically stretches from May to October, was jointly launched by the provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Working on Fire (WoF) and fire protection associations (FPAs) to mitigate the impact of veld and forest fires.
Cogta’s chief director of development and planning, Sam Ngubane, expressed the department’s condolences to the affected communities in Knysna and Port Elizabeth, where loss of life occurred. Residents in those areas recently faced the fury of devastating fires.
“The observation is that there is an increase in these kind of fires after and before the dates of the winter fire season due to climate change. We want to thank (all parties present) for your hard work in the prevention of forest fires. Be safe and do your best to protect communities and preserve the environment for future generations,” Ngubane said.
He also stressed the importance of farmers and land owners belonging to an FPA. WoF’s Martin Bolton said if it was not for the partnerships between all stakeholders, the number of fires in the region may have been much higher. In 2016 the number of decreased to 206 from 311 in 2015.
Due to drought conditions across the country, we are expecting a very difficult fire season. We are also one of the few countries in the world with a dedicated veld and forest firefighting force. All Mpumalanga teams have been topped up and are ready and fit,” Bolton said.
“To our firefighters, the most important guests today: thank (you) for your dedication to the greater good for the organisation and the country as a whole. We wish you all a safe fire season ahead. Please remember – safety first.”
All speakers at the launch said they hoped it would be a fire season without loss of life.
Also read 2016’s report: Challenging fire season awaits Lowveld
