Central SA
More veld fires reported─── 11:35 Mon, 22 Jul 2019
A total of 17 veld fires were recorded in many parts of the Free State last week due to the freezing weather conditions.
The spokesperson for Working on Fire in the Free State, Wayne Mokhethi, says the team was dispatched this morning to Harrismith where a veld fire broke out.
He adds that Bloemfontein and Qwaqwa recorded the highest number of fires with six each while Thaba Nchu, Reitz, Vrede, and Golden Gate recorded one fire each in the last few days.
He adds that it is common this time of the year due to dry and windy weather and that the number of veld fires has been picking up especially in the Eastern Free State where colder weather and frost drying out the vegetation have been the cause.
Mokhethi says as the temperature drops significantly, the fire activity across the province picks up enormously. He confirmed that no casualties were reported at this stage and further appealed to residents to urgently report any fires to their nearest fire station. Mokhethi also warned residents about the danger of fires and said area patrols have been increased during the fire season.
OFM News/Michael Tlhakudi
