Fire is one of the dangers of living in the Western Cape
Scroll down for ideas on firewise gardens - be SURE to keep your gutters clear and ensure there is no gap below your roof that the fire can easily get under -- the UCT damage was primarily on those buildings that had uncleared roofs covered in dead pine needles. The other major danger is alien trees. Pine trees, rooikrans and other Australian acacia and eucalyptus trees are serious fire hazards as they burn hotter and longer than local fynbos.
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Rooiels has formed a committee, the Rooiels Disaster Initiative - REDI. Contact them through RESA (Rooiels Ratepayers Association) or on email: [email protected]
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See more photos from Jean Tresfon
The 2019 Fire resulted in three deaths and shattered lives. It destroyed 40 houses in Betty's Bay and the precious indigenous trees up the kloofs in the Harold Porter Gardens. The fynbos in most of the reserve will recover well, but in those sections that have burned too frequently in the past few decades, we will lose species (see information on Fynbos and fire). The very strong SE winds initially sent the fire from Betty's Bay to Pringle Bay and then north-east all across the Kogelberg Biosphere burning out over 12000 hectares. Then the wind turned to a North gale on the 12th day and swept back around the mountains and down through Betty's Bay making it impossible to control. Once the fire is like that there is no controlling its path or where it destroys. Bolts of fire leap across highways and land on roofs and set the house alight and it all happens in a very short time. It is essential to avoid fires starting and to report them as soon as possible.
Rooiels is in a HIGH risk area for fires.
We have hot dry and very windy summers and alien plants in the area which accelerate fires. We need to be very vigilant.
In addition to national legislation relating to fire prevention - please:
DO NOT place any old coals from fireplaces or braais (no matter how dead they seem) into the fynbos around you. This is a major cause of fires as unseen embers are brought back to life by the wind long after you have gone.
DO NOT braai in an open fire on a day with wind. If you are building - site your braai area in a place with the south east protected from the wind. It is illegal to have an open fire in the wind.
DO NOT burn your garden waste - it is illegal to do so without a permit.
DO NOT throw cigarettes out - that is the possible cause of the devastating March 2017 fire which started at the roadside, near the metal railings on the R44 between Rooiels and Pringle Bay. Extreme care needs to be taken with cigarettes.
We have hot dry and very windy summers and alien plants in the area which accelerate fires. We need to be very vigilant.
In addition to national legislation relating to fire prevention - please:
DO NOT place any old coals from fireplaces or braais (no matter how dead they seem) into the fynbos around you. This is a major cause of fires as unseen embers are brought back to life by the wind long after you have gone.
DO NOT braai in an open fire on a day with wind. If you are building - site your braai area in a place with the south east protected from the wind. It is illegal to have an open fire in the wind.
DO NOT burn your garden waste - it is illegal to do so without a permit.
DO NOT throw cigarettes out - that is the possible cause of the devastating March 2017 fire which started at the roadside, near the metal railings on the R44 between Rooiels and Pringle Bay. Extreme care needs to be taken with cigarettes.
| fynbosfire_fuel-handbook_dec2015.pdf |
Go to the Rooiels Field Notes for Photos and information on the 2017 fire. Also see the Newsletters that were sent out to all residents about the Fire - there are copies on RERA News and RESA News In 2019 a new initiative was set up REDI (Rooiels Disaster Initiative) under the auspices of RERA to help to mitigate and respond to fire danger.
Be sure to remove the invasive and flammable Alien vegetation like Rooikrans that is on your property.
In an effort to reduce the fire hazard in the area, and in accordance with section 34(2) of the Standard Bye-Law relating to Community Fire Safety, as published per Provincial Notice No 342/2006 dated 27 October 2005, the Municipality is requiring owners to take steps to ensure that they reduce the fire hazards on their properties. This requires that owners remove dead brushwood and dead trees and old blombos (Metalasia) on their property. Please focus particular attention on reducing the hazard from alien vegetation most of which is particularly fire adapted and significantly increases fire danger (rooikrans, Acacia cyclops, goudwilger Acacia saligna, and some Pinus species).
Please do not leave dead plant material in a heap on your property or on the road verge as it constitutes a major fire risk. Some of the plants are fire retardants and you are encouraged to plant them in your gardens (e.g. bitou, all succulents including vygies -
ref De Villiers, C, et al “Ecosystem Guidelines for environmental assessment in the Western Cape”. Fynbos Forum)
In an effort to reduce the fire hazard in the area, and in accordance with section 34(2) of the Standard Bye-Law relating to Community Fire Safety, as published per Provincial Notice No 342/2006 dated 27 October 2005, the Municipality is requiring owners to take steps to ensure that they reduce the fire hazards on their properties. This requires that owners remove dead brushwood and dead trees and old blombos (Metalasia) on their property. Please focus particular attention on reducing the hazard from alien vegetation most of which is particularly fire adapted and significantly increases fire danger (rooikrans, Acacia cyclops, goudwilger Acacia saligna, and some Pinus species).
Please do not leave dead plant material in a heap on your property or on the road verge as it constitutes a major fire risk. Some of the plants are fire retardants and you are encouraged to plant them in your gardens (e.g. bitou, all succulents including vygies -
ref De Villiers, C, et al “Ecosystem Guidelines for environmental assessment in the Western Cape”. Fynbos Forum)
Sometime it would be good to have Information here on the Fires from the past, how long ago, where. Also some info on both the destruction and benefits of fire for the fynbos.
Plants to encourage for a firewise garden
All plants will burn, but some are less volatile than others. Well-watered plants will not burn as readily as those that are not well maintained. Citrus, coprosma, ice plants (vygies), sedum, echeveria and kalanchoe, with their high moisture content, burn slowly. For an interesting article on Fire and the Fynbos go to the Flora pages (it has been added Below the UNESCO article on value of fynbos)
Remove all invasive plants such as rooikrans, wattle, pine and gum, as well as exotics, such as bottlebrushes, melaleucas and conifers. These plants burn hotter and fiercer than indigenous fynbos.
Firewise plants for landscaping
Include these 40 firewise plants in any fire-prone landscapes in the Western Cape.
Remove all invasive plants such as rooikrans, wattle, pine and gum, as well as exotics, such as bottlebrushes, melaleucas and conifers. These plants burn hotter and fiercer than indigenous fynbos.
Firewise plants for landscaping
Include these 40 firewise plants in any fire-prone landscapes in the Western Cape.
- Trees: Cape ash (Ekebergia capensis), tree fuchsia (Halleria lucida), wild peach (Kiggelaria africana), Cape holly (Ilex mitis), forest elder (Nuxia floribunda), wild olive (Olea europeana subsp. africana), Southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), all oaks, (Quercus spp.), milkwood (Sideroxylon inerme), all flowering plums, peaches, crabapples and cherries.
- Shrubs: Buchu (Agathosma spp.), Marguerite daisy (Argyranthemum spp. & cvs.), camellias, Natal plum (Carissa macrocarpa & cvs.), tick berry (Chrysanthemoides monilifera), coprosma (Coprosma repens & cvs.), Cordyline australis & cvs., Erica spp., felicia, Gardenia augusta & cvs., Hibiscus rosa-sinensis & cvs., hydrangeas, Leucadendron spp., roses, Protea spp., dune crowberry (Searsia crenata syn. Rhus crenata), crane flower (Strelitzia reginae), Cape honeysuckle (Tecoma capensis), all succulents.
- Ground covers: Ground covering succulents and vygies, agapanthus, artotis, rockrose (Cistus spp.), Dymondia margaretae, Gazania spp., Helichrysumspp., statice (Limonium perezii), Plectranthus spp., scabiosa, star jasmine (Trachelospermum jasminoides), wild garlic, (Tulbaghia spp.)
Click to go to the Volunteer Firefighters Facebook page to get the latest news on Fires in the area (you dont have to subscribe to Facebook in order to see it - it will come on as a normal web page when you click). Please support the firefighters. They were amazing in the 2017 fire - but their resources were much depleted. We need to be able to supply all the incoming firefighters with somewhere to sleep and small bottles of water and coke and food. Support with funds, or drop off cases of drinks or canned food at the Fire Station in Pringle Bay, or leave it at the RESA office and ask Ina to notify them to collect it. Also whenever there is a fire in the area - see if you can volunteer. Your support in providing, food, lending mattresses, blankets and pillows etc is very much needed. We were so fortunate that people came from as far as Gansbaai to assist in the kitchen, over 100 meals sent from people in Hermanus to support the fire fighters at the Rooiels fire and Bettys Bay residents provided bedding etc for those in Crassula Hall. Many of the people in Pringle Bay and Rooiels contributed in so many ways -- our thanks to them all. And in particular to the RESA office that co-ordinated assistance to the firefighting efforts locally.
