Franschhoek fires largely contained as firefighters battle remaining active line

Firefighters have made significant progress in containing the fires burning in the mountains above Franschhoek, despite difficult conditions and overnight flare-ups.

According to the Cape Winelands District Municipality (CWDM), fire services working alongside CapeNature and the Winelands Fire Protection Association have successfully contained all but one active fire line as of Thursday afternoon, January 22.

"Unfortunately, the remaining active line is currently being pushed from the mountain ridge back toward Franschhoek. Firefighters remain concerned that this line may reach areas with a high fuel load," the district municipality stated.

On the other fire lines, mopping-up operations are well underway. Fire crews from Volunteer Wildfire Services, NCC, CapeNature and CWDM are conducting damping-down operations to reduce the risk of flare-ups in the coming days.

The first fire in the Franschhoek area started on Thursday, January 8, during which just over 19 000 hectares of veld were destroyed.

"Over the past six days, a further 3 500 hectares have burned, bringing the total area affected between January 8 and 22 to approximately 23 500 hectares," said the district municipality. 

The total cost of the fires has not yet been determined and will only be finalised once all invoices have been reconciled and total man-hours calculated.

The CWDM has thanked all partner agencies and members of the Franschhoek community for their continued support and assistance during the firefighting efforts.