Cape Town fires: Minister Barbara Creecy to assess damage caused by blaze

The Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Barbara Creecy, will on Saturday 24 April 2021 visit the Table Mountain National Park. Creecy will assess the damage to property caused by the Cape Town Fires.

This follows after the blaze destroyed more than 600 hectares of biodiversity area.

Cape Town Fires: Minister Creecy to assess damage

‘Map a way forward’

The department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment explained that Minister Creecy will “get a glimpse of the impact the fire has had on the communities around the national park.”

She will also engage the authorities and the firefighters, in order to map a way forward. Minister Creecy was joined by DFFE Spokesperson Albi Modise, who confirmed on Saturday that the “minister has just taken off to the sky [from the Newlands Base] for her to have a helicopter view of the extent of the damage”.

“Part of the plan for the minister today is to address and engage with the firefighters who were deployed to fight the fires that ravaged this part of the country.”

Tomorrow will mark a week since fires scorched hundreds of hectares of Table Mountain. Minister @BarbaraCreecy_ will assess the impact the fire has had on communities around the national park & engage authorities and firefighters, in order to map a way forward. #CapeTownFires pic.twitter.com/8DUlndjS9r

— Environmentza (@environmentza) April 24, 2021

Minister @BarbaraCreecy_ departs from the Newlands Fire base aboard the @wo_fire helicopter which were instrumental in fighting the fires earlier this week. She will be assessing the damage the fire has caused. #capetownfires pic.twitter.com/GrTcgSfCS4

— Environmentza (@environmentza) April 24, 2021

Cultural landmarks destroyed

The Cape Town fires first broke out on Sunday, 18 April. Over the next three days, it moved across the Table Mountain National Park, destroying biodiversity and cultural landmarks, such as the UCT Jagger Library,  Rhodes Memorial’s restaurant and Mostert Mill.

Firefighters from the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment’s Working on Fire programme, as well as teams from the City of Cape Town, NCC Environmental Services, Volunteer Wildfire Service and the SANParks, amongst others, successfully battled the fire that was subsequently contained earlier this week.

UCT students lost their belongings amidst the frantic Cape Town Fire evacuation. Meanwhile, SPCA found the charred bodies of piglets trapped in cages, as well as the burnt remains of wild animals. Elsewhere, rescue workers gave a distressed tortoise a drink of water – watch the video here.

Bravery and dedication of firefighters battling the Cape Town fires

On 21 April, the South African National Parks (SANParks) praised the bravery and dedication of firefighters in their efforts to contain the Cape Town fire which destroyed the Table Mountain National Park.

Those involved in containing the fire included the volunteers, City of Cape Town (CoCT) Fire, Rescue Services and Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) rangers, amongst others. SANParks CEO Fundisile Mketeni said:

“The devastating fires across the TMNP have brought home the value of partnerships and working together as a community to manage this National Park we all love. Without the collective efforts of the 125 TMNP rangers, the 170 fire and rescue workers, the South African National Defence Force, CoCT personnel, law enforcement and the many volunteers, the damage, as devastating as it was, could have been much worse”.

The SPCA is raising funds to assist animals that were injured in the Cape Town fire. It started a back-a-buddy campaign to purchase cool packs and various items to help any animals that were hurt during the blaze.

You can help by making a donation here.