According to Elske le Roux, operational support officer for CFPA, the first day was set out for competitions between the WoF teams and included tug-of-war, team songs and a competition to identify the toughest firefighter. "Personnel from Eden Fire and Rescue also attended the day with the SCFPA and the WoF firefighters and won the toughest firefighter competition." The second day kicked off with a drill parade by the eight WoF teams and was followed by various presentations and speeches by noteworthy individuals such as Winston Smith (WoF assistant managing director), Llewellyn Pillay (WoF managing director), Paul Gerber (SCFPA managing director), Trevor Wilson (NUFPA manager) and Collin Deiner (chief director for Disaster Management and Fire Brigade Services in the Western Cape). Prizes were also handed over to the winning teams of the previous competition day.
Working on Fire is a government-funded job creation program focusing on integrated fire management in South Africa. WoF firefighters are recruited from marginalised communities and trained in fire awareness and education, prevention and fire suppression skills. During 2009, WoF and the SCFPA formed a partnership and provided the organisation with firefighting teams to service the members of the SCFPA. Currently, the eight WoF teams consist of 226 firefighters.
Le Roux said that due to the upliftment aspect of WoF, the SCFPA thought it well to provide one of the firefighters with a chance of a lifetime to study for a higher certificate in veldfire management at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (George Campus), starting next year. During the event on the Friday, the full bursary was awarded to Norman Malatji, a WoF firefighter based in the Crags near Plettenberg Bay.
"I am very excited to study veldfire management next year. I have been a firefighter for WoF for almost two years and have grown a massive interest in veldfires," said Malatji.
To make the event more exceptional, an aerial firefighting display over the ocean was presented by one of WoF's Huey helicopters, showcasing various types of water drops executed during veldfire suppression.
"The Southern Cape region has a whole-year fire season, as could be seen by the many fires during the past Winter. Summer brings higher temperatures, lower humidity, the well-known South-Easterly winds and a high inflow of vacationers and tourists, thus increasing the fire danger significantly. The SCFPA requests the public to be vigilant this Summer and contact their local fire brigade if they see any smoke. Open fires are also prohibited during this period," said Le Roux.
She gave the assurance that the SCFPA is ready for this Summer fire season and has at its disposal the WoF teams with their own transport, based throughout the Southern Cape region at Goudveld, Crags, Sedgefield, George, Mossel Bay, Riversdale and Ladismith. "Aerial resources are also available, which includes three spotter planes, three helicopters and two fixed-wing bomber planes. Also, at the SCFPA Knysna office an Advanced Fire Information System (AFIS) terminal and satellite have been set up that act as an early fire detection system to improve response time to veldfires.
For more information on how to become a SCFPA member, visit the website, www.scfpa.co.za or phone the office at 044 302 6912.
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WoF teams participated in tug-of-war competitions at a recent two-day thanksgiving and launch event.
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