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Tuesday 22 November 2011
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FISH FOR AFRICA: An unexpected sardine run passed Noordhoek and Hout Bay over the weekend and drew eager crowds to the beaches. Read more on page four. Photo: Edrea Du Toit
Scarborough now FireWise DALEEN FOUCHÉ
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CARBOROUGH and Misty Cliffs were officially recognised as the first FireWise communities in the Cape Peninsula during an exhibition of its fire fighting equipment on Sunday 20 November. The Cape Peninsula is notorious for veldfires in summer, with the highest fire danger period between January and February. The two communities achieved this internationally recognised status in only six months, when it could take up to two years to meet the stringent requirements. To be recognised as a FireWize community, a public meeting must first be held, a committee must be formed and then the community must be assessed for fire risks. A fire action plan must be developed for a twelve month period and, finally, an open day must be
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held. Enviro Wildfire Services, an NPO involved with fire prevention and fighting, and the Cape Peninsula Fire Protection Association, a civic organisation, initiated and implemented the FireWise concept for Scarborough and Misty Cliffs. Scarborough and Ocean View experienced a devastating veldfire in 2008 (“Devastation,” People’s Post, 29 January 2008), after which residents became more aware of fire risks. The Scarborough and Misty Cliffs Fire Unit (SMCFU) was established two years ago to implement preventative fire measures and to empower the community to act in case of a veldfire. The unit held several fund raisers to buy fire fighting equipment such as pumps and hoses. It has identified a need for an external water source, due to the drop in water pressure during fire fighting efforts.
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Rob Erasmus of Enviro Wildfire Services says the Unit intends setting up water tanks on the perimeter of Scarborough. There are 25 volunteers in the unit, all of whom have received basic fire fighting training. Erasmus says the focus of the unit is not to fight fires on the mountain side, but to protect the villages from fires. The volunteers will serve as a first response to fire in and around their community and assist fire fighters when they arrive on the scene. SMCFU Chairman Kevin O’Brien emphasised that initiatives like this are necessary, especially when there are several fires, and fire fighters can not respond immediately. He says the unit operates in conjunction with the City of Cape Town fire and Rescue Services and Table Mountain National Park. “Communities can do things for
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themselves,” he says. Ian Schnetler, City of Cape Town’s fire chief, encourages communities to become FireWise in conjunction with municipal fire services and to operate within the structures. “The emphasis is on preventing fires.” Thomas Mckenzie of FireWize Africa says the aim is for individual land and home owners to take responsibility for their own safety. FireWise was started in America to enable communities to prevent and mitigate the effects and damage of wild fires. The concept was brought to South Africa by FFA, a group of companies that specialise in Integrated Fire Management. Several other Far South communities with existing Fire Volunteer Units, like Ocean View, Masiphumelele and Red Hill, are being assisted by Enviro Wildfire Services and City of Cape Town’s Disaster Management, to become FireWize.
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