News Learning from history: fighting fire with fire Fire By Reinard Geldenhuys, chief fire officer, District Municipality

on Fire and Volunteer Wildfire Services were deployed into the mountains and trying to contain the fire under very difficult terrain and wind conditions.

“Those that fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” Winston Churchill……

The bulk of the fire was now on the southern slope above the farm Ganzekraal. This farm is extremely well prepared for fire both in equipment and firebreaks.

Right in the path of our fire’s slow The terrain necessitated the preparation of downslope march was a R14 000 a tracer line and subsequent back burn 000 plantation, well protected by indigenous forests with only n the last day of winter, direction and started moving down two weak points where mountain a lovely windless, balmy the southern slope of the mountain. extends down a ridge to Sunday afternoon, the plantation. the fire season in the By Tuesday morning, a short (smaller) OOverberg kicked off. A fire started high incident management team One of the owners, Bernard Beyers, up in the Riviersonderend Mountains, consisting of officers from Overberg an extremely knowledgeable man, situated in the Overberg District Fire and Cape Nature personnel was explained to us that there was a similar Municipality in the mobilised to assume command of fire 20 years ago, also threatening province of South , beyond the the incident. the plantation with the same two reach of ground teams and posing no exposures. The then Department of immediate threat to anyone. What would have been fairly simple Forestry (Bosbou) prepared a tracer line tactics in fire season became a across the two ridges from indigenous Fire units were put on standby but no logistical challenge with a helicopter forest to indigenous forest, waited for actions except monitoring the fire and spotter aircraft eventually flown in the fire to come within fifty metres and were taken. The fire burned slowly from Sutterheim towards the evening did a back burn off the tracer line. and without direction throughout the to assist in fire suppression activities. rest of Sunday and part of Monday. Looking at the terrain this tactics Only towards the evening of By Wednesday, the incident seem to make a lot of sense and the Monday, 1 September 2014, the first management team was expanded preparation of the one tracer belt of day of Spring, did the fire start taking and up to sixty fire fighters from Working about three-metres wide made its

The WoF teams hard at work

16 l Volume 3 No. 3 You can’t afford to wait in an emergency. Davey’s Firefighter will make sure you don’t.

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SafeQuip_Davey fire ad 2014 final.indd 1 2014/02/18 01:23:06 PM News The Emergency Care Institute of South Africa’s DISMERT course

he University of technicians, paramedics and canine director, disaster management (UCT) and the Emergency search and rescue, amongst others, and fire brigade services, Western Care Institute of South Africa attended the course. Cape Government and Reinard offered a Disaster Medical Geldenhuys, chief fire officer, ResponseT Training (DISMERT) short Fire and Rescue International Overberg District Municipality. course during October 2014. The spent an evening with the 20- practical module included a real- odd students, which haled from The course was presented by Dr life scenario and camp was set up various countries and across many Wayne Smith, head of disaster at approximately 17h00, practise spheres of expertise. We were medicine, Division of Emergency went through the night until joined by Ken Terry, head of the Medicine (UCT/ SUN). Dr Smith approximately 10h00 the following National Disaster Management has over 20 years of emergency morning. Doctors, technical rescue Centre (NDMC); Colin Deiner, chief medicine experience, which include

way onto the objectives for the next On Friday, focus shifted to the northern By the Sunday afternoon the last of operational period. slope with actions to shorten the lines. the fires on the Southern slopes were On Saturday, we were joined by a extinguished and by Wednesday, 10 By Wednesday night, the tracer line on Volunteer Wildfire Services with their October 2014, fairly heavy rain on the the eastern flank was prepared and work cut out for them leading the mountain around Riviersonderend with the fire now getting close teams final assault on the eastern flank with took care of the remaining fire on the remained on the line and lit it at 05h00 the WoF team from . high ridges of the mountain. on Thursday morning, 4 September 2014. The western flank was now beginning to Two weeks later, another two Further actions by Beyers and his teams threaten the plantation again through fires started near due with more back burns in cooperation the remaining fynbos ridge and the to lightning strikes, indicating that with the fire services saw the eastern same tactics were followed building a we might be in for an interesting threat to the plantation secured. tracer belt and burning it out. 2014/15 fire season!

18 l Volume 3 No. 3