A fire that began halfway up Skeleton Gorge yesterday flared up overnight, with two helicopters dispatched this morning to water bomb the slopes above Kirstenbosch.
According to Working on Fire, three helicopters and 90 ground crew members were on the frontlines making good progress fighting the fire yesterday. Fire and rescue spokesman Theo Layne said Table Mountain National Park and Working on Fire teams remained on scene throughout the night to monitor the hotspots that were inaccessible to crews earlier in the day.
#SkeletonGorgeFire There are a number of flare ups on this fire. Crews from TMNP, NCC, WoF and @vwsfires are still on scene. Some crews will be there throughout the night.
— VWS Wildfires (@vwsfires) April 16, 2018
But the fire was burning on steep, difficult-to-access slopes, and the helicopters couldn’t fly after nightfall, resulting in some flare ups overnight.
“Our firefighting crews are still on scene at the fire that started about half past three yesterday afternoon above Kirstenbosch gardens,” Layne said. “Two helicopters have been called back this morning to extinguish the fire which is on the upper slopes of the mountain. They’ve got two sections that they’re going to be focusing on. Crews will most likely remain on scene throughout the day.”
The video below shows helicopters bombing the fire yesterday:
Live video of the #skeletongorgefire above #Kirstenbosch https://t.co/kFDqq6jJ3a
— Britefire (@BritefireTweets) April 16, 2018
The mountain is still shrouded in smoke this morning, as the helicopters get back to work.
Chopper in action at Nursery Buttress at #KirstenboschFire #VWS #Wildfire pic.twitter.com/iZ1B7DXb5h
— Gigi Laidler (@GigiLaidler) April 16, 2018
Picture: Twitter