Forest and Bushfires in the Western Cape Region / South Africa; 19 January 2000
Forest and Bushfires in the Western CapeRegion/South Africa
19 January 2000
By Michael Calvin & Deborah Wettlaufer
Hout Bay, South Africa
17 January 2000, 18:00 GMT
Normally, the view from our cottage is beautiful: a sweeping view of Hout Bay with its indigo and turquoise waters framed by spectacular mountains that drop straight to the ocean. The mountains surrounding Hout Bay are covered with one of the least known and most spectacular communities of plants in the world. This past Sunday, after five days of intense south-easterly winds, known as the Cape Doctor, all this changed. About 15:00, a column of thick smoke appeared from behind Constantiaberg Mountain, about 10 km southeast of us. About an hour later, the fire had crested the ridge and flames were visible. The front began burning downhill, slowly at first, then picking up speed as huge flames were pushed by a gale-force wind down the extremely steep slopes. The village of Hout Bay lay directly in the path of the fire as it moved toward the sea.
Around 19:00, as the flames approached houses just outside the village, my wife and I jumped in the Land Rover and drove to a point where we could better view the progress of the fire. What we saw was amazing. This fire had speed and power and it was burning down a very steep slope like a runaway train. As the fire spotted, new fronts appeared along the slope directly above the village and over near Chapman’s Peak Drive. This was the nightmare fire scenario that we used to train for on the San Bernardino National Forest in Southern California. We were transfixed as flame lengths of 20 to 40 meters silhouetted the expensive houses perched on the hillside.
The local authorities, along with home and business owners, were caught off guard by the fire’s rapid advance. It seemed like everyone was going about their normal business, even as the fire headed down the mountain. There were no roadblocks and only a few emergency vehicles could be seen around the threatened homes where people and vehicles were clearly visible just below the flames. Soon a 20-hectare patch of Monterey Pine exploded and a bright orange ball of fire could be seen. The fire had claimed the first of five houses that would be destroyed that night. Thirty minutes later the sirens signaled a slow, but steady procession of emergency vehicles into Hout Bay through narrow roads clogged with frightened residents and curious onlookers. We drove down to the harbor where the high winds blasted us with sand, and looked across the bay to Chapman’s Peak Drive. What we saw was very disheartening: multiple fires were burning all over the mountains on both sides of the scenic road. Sailboats rocking in the choppy water of the harbor were silhouetted against the deep red glow of the fires. We returned home, but had a hard time sleeping, waking at intervals to check the fire from our window.
In the morning, we drove down to the village to survey the damage. It was a miracle that no one was hurt and only five houses were lost. In many places, the fire had burnt between buildings down to the main road. Incredibly, no businesses were destroyed though a few sustained some damage. Later, we learned that many were saved through the efforts of owners and volunteers. The owner, his staff and over 20 volunteers battled the flames for four hours to save the historic Chapman’s Peak Hotel. We drove up along Chapman’s Peak Drive, a truly spectacular area where the fire was so intense it burned right into the sea. It was a shock to see that 90 percent of the vegetation was gone. Surprisingly, the road was still open despite fires still smoldering, and rocks and debris all over the road. Crows and black eagles, looking for an easy meal, soared above. We know the vegetation will recover, but it saddened us to see an area of such beauty reduced to such desolation.
For the natural vegetation of the area, the fire signaled a new beginning. The plant community of this region, called fynbos, is unique and has a species density higher than any other place in the world. Many fynbos species wait for fire to release their seeds and the fynbos landscape is dominated by plants that are killed by fire. A fire frequency at an interval of 10 to 15 years is necessary to maintain healthy species diversity. Most of the fire area in Hout Bay had not burned in over 20 years. Like the other true Mediterranean areas of the world, fire is a frequent visitor. In addition, people have come here to enjoy the dry summers, unique in Southern Africa, and the beautiful landscape. They have built their holiday cottages and homes in the mountains near the fynbos, creating a massive problem for an already underfunded fire management and protection program. Luckily, here in South Africa most of the houses are built of stone or brick with steel or tile roofs. This undoubtedly saved many homes.
The second day brought water-dropping helicopters from the South African Air Force. The large Russian-built ships with Bambi buckets were very well organized and accurate in their dropping technique. They quickly found a water source and were soon dropping water at four-to-five-minute minute intervals. Their tactics were directed at keeping the fire from backing down the hill towards houses. However, without ground crew follow-up and with the adverse fire conditions, the effort was not successful. After dark, when the helicopters were no longer flying, the wind picked up from the northeast at about 80 kph. By 20:00, a number of houses and Mandela Park, a settlement area, were under threat. The area was evacuated as the fire put on another spectacular display. Fortunately, no houses were lost.
Throughout the Western Cape, fires have burnt with the same intensity over the last several days. To the south towards the Cape of Good Hope, a large fire threatened a number of towns and has covered thousands of hectares. Another fire in the Stellenbosch area, famous for its great wines, has caused major damage to the vineyards and tree plantations. In addition, there are numerous fires to the north and east, and the fire season is just beginning.
Lack of resources to fight the fires is a major problem. This afternoon, a radio announcement stated: “Volunteers were desperately needed. Volunteers are to be properly dressed with long pants and shirt. In addition, they are to bring their own water bottle and something to beat the fire with.”
This morning, while walking along Victorskloof Road, an area about 5 km west and across the valley from the fire, I heard a Burchell’s Coucal calling. It’s a jay-sized bird that produces a series of notes that rise and fall, like water pouring from a bottle. The Zulu people believe it can forecast rain, hence the name ‘rainbird’. Did it know something the weather forecasters did not? I hope so.
By Michael Calvin & Deborah Wettlaufer
Hout Bay, South Africa
Photographs: Michael Calvin
Update Report: Western Cape Fires 19 January 2000, 13:00 GMT
There were a few new starts locally during the last 24 hours, but most were contained. The fires at Hout Bay (approximately 2000 ha)and Kommetjie (approximately 1000+ ha) and Stellenbosch (unknown size) continue to be areas of concern. In other areas of the Western Cape there have been new fires in the winelands, Atlantis, and Gordon’s Bay.
Last night most of the fires were quiet, except for the Hout Bay fire, which flared up about 02:00, causing evacuation of a housing development near Noordhoek on the south end of the fire. In Hout Bay, the winds were calm at 06:00 with an inversion. The temperature was 22°C. There was very
little activity on the north end of the fire due to the inversion.
On our way into Cape Town this morning, we noticed a large column of smoke to the north, probably along the west coast. There is no information on this fire at present. The entire Cape Town area, including many kilometres out to sea, was covered by smoke. On our way back to Hout Bay, we drove through Constantia Nek, a saddle that divides the mountain range above Hout Bay (where the fire is currently burning) from Table Mountain. This is the northern extent of the fire and a very critical point. If the fire crosses the road, the entire Table Mountain area could easily become involved and many more communities would be threatened. It was obvious that fire command realised this since there were three helicopters dropping water in the area. This was about 12:00 and the fire activity was beginning to increase as the inversion lifted. At the top of the Nek,
emergency vehicles and water trucks were waiting for instructions.
About twenty minutes later the inversion broke and fire activity increased dramatically. Soon the fire began major runs up to the top of Vlakenberg Mt., luckily away from Constantia Nek. Within one hour there was a large convection column over the mountain. Presently the north end of this fire has burnt into an area of houses and there have been reports of houses on fire. To the south of Hout Bay near Simonstown another fire is burning houses with reports of trapped personnel. The weather outlook calls for continued high temperatures but the wind is switching to the south west.
The wind switch will cause problems for firefighters as unlined areas will flare. This is a very dynamic and dangerous situation.
Additional information from the GFMC fire information system:
Visit the South Africa photo archive of GFMC.
For more information on recent developments in fire management in South Africa visit the last issue of IFFN:
Wildfire in the Southern African Development Community Conference as part of the Wood for Africa Conference 1999
http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/iffn/country/za/za_9.htm
The National Veld and Forest Fire Act: Act 101 of 1998 of the Republic of South Africa
http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/iffn/country/za/za_10.htm
Integrated Fire Management in Southern Africa
http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/iffn/country/za/za_11.htm
Proposed Co-operative Fire Management in the SADC Countries of Southern Africa
http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/iffn/country/za/za_12.htm
Reduction in Fire Incidents in East Caprivi
http://www.ruf.uni-freiburg.de/fireglobe/iffn/country/na/na_2.htm
