Chopper kept grounded while Wilderness burns

GEORGE NEWS - Gerhard Otto, head of Eden Disaster Management said the Huey helicopter with pilot Nico Heyns was dispatched on 11 August after official approval by the Eden DM Fire Chief Freddy Thaver.

"Aerial support was officially requested at 15:17 and the chopper was airborne within the next 10 minutes."

But, Conrad Maree, owner of Savannah Helicopters and the pilot of the Eurocopter A1350 was only summoned by George Municipality's Community Safety director Barend Nelson shortly before 17:00.

"As early as 15:00 that afternoon I had called Gerhard Otto to offer my services after I had heard there were so many fires raging in the district. Otto said he would relay this to Barend Nelson, " says Maree.

"I feel that if I had been called out earlier, I could have made a huge difference. We can prevent a fire from running out of hand in the first place. We do not charge a stand-by fee and our helicopter is modern and the turn-around time fast, scooping water with our 800 litre bambi.

"I do not known why I was not immediately called out. I flew for an hour before having to call it off as at 18:15 it became too dark. I made 25 trips. I managed to wet down sections that were still burning near homes. I live in George, and set up a business with a view to being part of the community. I am available to set up a memorandum of agreement with the relevant authorities. I sat the whole afternoon waiting for a call and only after I had knocked off and gone home, was I called at my Camphersdrift home to get back to the George Airport."

Maree appealed to the authorities to make use of aerial firefighting services as soon as fires are detected. "It is more cost effective and far safer to prevent fires raging out of control."

The George Herald asked Barend Nelson for comment, but he said he did not want to speak without going through the official municipal communication channels and the joint statement released by the George and Eden Municipalities yesterday, did not address this issue.

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