The Table Mountain fire has been contained and rescue operations will commence shortly to restore affected areas.
SANParks says by midnight on Monday, 19 April the fire was still raging below and above Tafelberg Road – it had been brought under control earlier in the day but flared up again when the wind picked up speed. The M3 and Dewaal Drive remain closed to road users.
“Weather seems good today for the aerial support to resume with fire extinguishing operations. – Five helicopters will start the initially extinguishing areas close to the city edge. (3 Huey helicopters and two Oryx from SA National Defence Force) will be assisting with fire suppression in the Table Mountain National Park,” said Babalwa Dlangamandla, Table Mountain National Park PR Officer.
She said there was a considerable difference from Sunday to today – on Tuesday, 90% of the fire was brought under control.
“Approximately 600 hectares have burned up to this far. Multiple mop-up operations will follow in days to come,” said Dlangamandla.
The City’s Disaster Risk Management Centre coordinated a joint damage assessment to initiate repairs to the roadways and other City infrastructure damaged by the Rhodes Memorial fire.
They have activated Solid Waste Management to clear the fire debris.
“The Electricity Department has advised that no major damage has occurred to the medium voltage infrastructure. However, the overhead lines to affected buildings have been damaged.
“Meanwhile, the Environmental Health Service is doing ongoing water sampling at the Molteno Reservoir to ensure that any ash from the fire does not affect the water quality,” the City said on Tuesday.
Residents who were evacuated were given the go-ahead to return to their homes.
Video clips uploaded to social media detail the suspect accused of starting the fire being taken into custody by police.
He has been identified as a 35-year-old man and will appear in court soon.
