Cape Town - Soon after announcing that a suspect would be appearing in court in relation to a fire on the front face of Table Mountain, firefighters were at it again in battling yet another blaze, this time at the Clovelly mountainous area (Trappieskop).
In a statement, SANParks said the suspect was detained and charged with arson for the fire that occurred on Table Mountain on Sunday.
The suspect is expected to appear in the Cape Town Magistrate’s Court today (Tues).
The fire that started on the front face of the mountain around the Platteklip Gorge on Sunday, was reported at around 3.45pm and contained at 7.50 pm on the same day.
SANParks spokesperson, JP Louw, said Table Mountain National Park fire management dispatched ground firefighting crews from NCC Wildfires, Volunteer Wildfire Services, and crews from Provincial Disaster Management Centre.
“In addition to the ground crews, two Huey helicopters, a spotter plane, as well as the Blackhawk, were dispatched in support of the ground firefighting crews.”
While the fire was contained, flareups occurred during the night.
SANParks said the fire had destroyed approximately nine hectares of land before containment and no injuries or damage to property were reported.
A wildland firefighter from NCC, however, fell and sustained injury.
The firefighter was airlifted via a Skymed chopper for medical evacuation. Yesterday, SANParks said crews from SANParks, the Provincial Disaster Management Centre and Working on Fire will be on rotation for at least 24 hours.
This, as aerial resources and ground firefighting crews were deployed to combat the fire in Clovelly that occurred at around 12.20pm.
The Platteklip Hiking Trail was closed on Sunday and remained closed as of yesterday (Mon), due to the risk of flare ups with the prevailing wind from the North East.
The City’s mayco member for safety and security, JP Smith, said the City assisted with choppers to waterbomb the fire above Deer Park.
He added that crews from NCC and Volunteer Wildfire Services were on site.
Smith said three suspects were seen leaving the area of ignition earlier in the afternoon.
“Upon being sighted, they fled from the Parks Ranger. Additional Law Enforcement resources were called in and a perimeter boundary established. One suspect was found hiding behind a rock and was taken into custody,” Smith said.
City Fire and Rescue Services spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said: “At 15.55 we received a request from TMNP for the use of the two choppers and the spotter plane to water bomb the area. These were later supplemented by the Black Hawk helicopter.”
The fire was in a large area of vegetation in a very rocky area on Table Mountain, which further necessitated the use of ground crews, he added.