With Fire Season in full swing, the team have been working around the clock, without a break, to keep our community safe. Our regular training has slowed down, with energy and time reserved for visibility drives, duty shifts and responding to incidents.
Over the festive season, the team went out on regular visibility drives, checking public braai spots and reminding visitors about being fire wise. Over New Year’s Eve, we were stationed at various hot spots around Betty’s Bay, monitoring activities and keeping a watchful eye out for any fireworks or flares. While there were a few smaller crackers set off, we are pleased to have had a quiet and uneventful evening and thank all the residents for their efforts in this regard.
We are also incredibly proud of all of our new recruits, who have now had their first experience on an active fire line, both in Betty’s Bay and nearby Hawston. We offer our assistance to the other teams whenever possible.
The team have also attended a number of Motor Vehicle Accidents (MVAs), putting all of their hours of training into good use.
Fire and Rescue: The team has responded to 3 MVAs over December and January so far, working again with the medical first responders to ensure that patient and scene safety are prioritized, and thereafter assisting the Overstrand Municipality (OM) Kleinmond Fire & Rescue team with clearing and cleaning the scene.
They have also attended to a fire that started in Betty’s Bay, extinguishing the fire quickly with the assistance of OM Kleinmond Fire Team and the Pringle Bay Volunteer team. The scene was then regularly monitored and re-doused to ensure there were not further flare-ups.
A number of team members also assisted in putting out the blaze of two separate fires that occurred in nearby Hawston.
Are you fire-wise? Is your property and home fire-wise and prepared for fire season? Please ensure that outside braais are properly contained and that you always have a hose nearby. Fires should only ever be made in designated braai or fire pits and in favourable conditions (not too windy). Please ensure that you dispose of your coals properly, making sure that everything is completely saturated and cold before disposal.
Try to maintain a decent “defensible space” between your house and garden, keeping only lawn or low succulents close to your structures.
Follow this link to download the Fire Wise Booklet which is full of great tips and important information : https://bettysbayratepayers.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/WCG-Wild-Fire-Ready-Booklet-13082020-.pdf
Report fire and emergencies immediately. Always phone – no WhatsApp messages AND no WhatsApp calls
YOUR IMPORTANT NUMBERS – load them into your phone NOW!
028 312 2400 ALL Fire & Emergency – you can use this number to report a fire, an accident, or ANY emergency.
Jorika Rabie