RSA – Hundreds of sheep killed in veld fire
Hundreds of sheep killed in veld fire
29 July 2007
published by www.sowetan.co.za
Around 681 sheep were found smouldering in a field ravaged by fire, the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (NSCPA) said today.
NSPCA executive director Marcel Meredith said seven emergency teams had been sent to various parts of the country, affected by fires over the past weekend.
In the Wakkerstroom area, bordering KwaZulu-Natal, a team of emergency workers came across the sheep “some still smouldering”.
“They thought all of them were dead…but there was one or two still alive and they had to be put down,” she said.
NSPCA spokeswoman, Christine Kuch said the teams had been dispatched to assist any trapped or injured animals.
“Animals on farms are confined. If there is a fire they can run into fences…” she said.
Five teams were sent to the Machadodorp and Sabie areas in Mpumalanga – near the KwaZulu-Natal border – in search of wild animals, livestock and smaller animals such as tortoise and porcupines who may have been affected by the fire.
Mpumalangas Greylingstad and Balfour areas were also being monitored by the NSPCA, where around 13 animals were also put down.
Emergency teams were treating the rest of them for burns.
Eleven people burned to death in fires which engulfed parts of Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal on Friday.
At the Studs Farm outside Machadodorp about 800 cattle, a number of sheep, four houses, and telephone lines were also engulfed by the flames.
