There is a range of information on the fire but it is not always easy to get the latest. You can get updates on the Fire from the Greater Overberg FPA facebook page. Or on the Overstrand Municipal Facebook page. There is usually a post each day around lunchtime with information given on the extent of the fire, the current R44 status and the organisations involved in fighting the fire. Occasionally there are some interesting extracts on what has happened while working on the fire and the significant difficulties faced with the wild wind shifts in both direction and speed and then in some places the fire creeps underground in the spongy turf and then pops up elsewhere when the crew had thought it was controlled. The crews have been magnificent, worked together tirelessly and have managed to save the Harold Porter Botanical Gardens but much of the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve has been devastated. To give an idea of the scale of operations, on Tuesday 8th January there were 92 firefighters, 6 Helicopters (3 City of Cape Town and 3 Overstrand and Cape Winelands) a Working on Fire Spotter plan and 2 fixed wing bombers. The agencies involved included: Overstrand Municipality, Overberg District Municipality, City of Cape Town, CapeNature, Working on Fire, NCC Environmental Services, Volunteer Wildfire Services, Greater Overberg FPA, Limitless Fire and Winelands FPA, Cape Winelands, Betty’s Bay Community Volunteer Fire Fighters, Pringle Bay Community Volunteer Fire Fighters, as well as various NGOs and other public support organisation. Earlier support was also given by the Helderberg Fire Watch, Overberg Wildfire Volunteers, Gordon’s Bay Fire Watch and WSAR To give an idea of the scale of operations, on Tuesday 8th January there were 92 firefighters, 6 Helicopters, a Working on Fire Spotter plane and 2 fixed wing bombers. The agencies involved included: Overstrand Municipality, Overberg District Municipality, City of Cape Town, CapeNature, Working on Fire, NCC Environmental Services, Volunteer Wildfire Services, Greater Overberg FPA, Limitless Fire and Winelands FPA, Cape Winelands, Betty’s Bay Community Volunteer Fire Fighters, Pringle Bay Community Volunteer Fire Fighters, as well as various NGOs and other public support organisation. Earlier support was also given by the Helderberg Fire Watch, Overberg Wildfire Volunteers, Gordon’s Bay Fire Watch and WSAR There are some interesting posts including a timeline series from Sullivan Photography with their description of what one crew was doing above Harold Porter Gardens: "High up in the mountains with no additional resources, crews use special Beaters and Rake hoes to work the line - Some refer to this as ‘High Speed Gardening’... It is one of the most gruelling tasks of any wildland firefighter, facing dangers of falling rocks in steep terrain, localised wind shifts, ash pits, fatigue, dehydration, all the normal dangers of fire phenomena and one of the most unexpected but common factors - Cold! It gets cold when the sun drops and after resting for a few moments, the chill of the wind and altitude set in. This particular Hotshot crew from the NCC spent 24 hours on the mountain that night - 05/01/19 A BIG THANK YOU to all of the Firefighters and their support teams, Law enforcement, the Volunteers who kept everyone fed and to the public who continue to show their support by both donating and assisting where possible. " There is also an interesting article in the Daily Maverick written by Tony Weaver on how their house survived the fire The Kogelberg Nature Reserve complex incorporates the critically endangered Kogelberg Sandstone Fynbos. This Kogelberg Nature Reserve Fynbos should burn every 17 years. The Fynbos burning now is only between 8 and 12 years old. This is devastating for Fynbos species, and their ability to recover.
The Vulnerable Marsh Rose (Orothamnus zeyheri) is just one of the species now threatened by the fire. Fynbos is a fire-adapted vegetation and is dependent on appropriate fires for its survival. Fire drives this cycle, and at appropriate intervals it stimulates re-sprouting and seedling recruitment which leads to better species diversity. However, an increase in fire frequency causes the structure and composition of fynbos to change and leads to the potential loss of species. The ideal fire frequency in the Kogelberg Nature Reserve Complex is 17 years. Not only is the flora compromised by these fires, but the fauna has been affected with loss of shelter and food. Furthermore the Boland Mountain Complex is classified as a strategic water source area, it provides good quality water for the Cape Metropolitan Area. Intense and too frequent fires can decrease the rate of infiltration by destroying the litter and organic layers in the soil resulting in run-off and less water entering the dams Not only are the ongoing fires a threat to the environment but there is a chance that they could spread to the agricultural area in the Elgin basin and to the Steenbras Dam plantation. The image below shows the fire in orange but taken on 5th January before the fire had spread throughout the reserve.
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