The Cape Winelands District Municipality’s Fire Services are still battling the ongoing blaze in the mountains above Franschhoek as of 8.30am on Thursday, February 25.
The fire, which broke out in the Overberg a few days ago and made its way into the Cape Winelands area on Tuesday, is being fuelled by dense vegetation.
It is currently situated in the Banhoek and Bergriver Dam vicinity and continues to burn out of control, according to the municipality.
“The various burnouts and fire breaks that the ground teams established yesterday have been holding,” said Cape Winelands District Municipality. “The ground teams worked throughout the night, managing flare-ups and beating back the fire line.”
The fire crews consist of firefighters and ground team members from the Municipality and CapeNature. In total, 60 firefighters are currently at the scene and they are assisted by two fire fighting vehicles.
The teams will continue active firefighting duty today and those who worked yesterday will be replaced. Aerial support is available if necessary, according to the Municipality.
In an earlier update, on February 24, the Municipality described the terrain as “rough” and “inaccessible by vehicle” in many places.
#Franschhoek this evening. pic.twitter.com/KHioL77cd4
— Franschhoek Life ?? (@FranschhoekLife) February 24, 2021
Picture: Facebook/Cape Winelands DM