Update
GEORGE NEWS - After two weeks of raging fires in the Garden Route, most of the fires are under control. The first fire started on 24 October in Herold and it spread over the Outeniqua mountains to George. Since then it escalated. In total, 12 fires started at different places, mainly because of natural causes.
At least eight people died in the Karatara area and 96 000 hectares were destroyed.
The current fires have been described as bigger than the Knysna fires of 2017 when 22 000 hectares were destroyed. At one stage more than 500 firefighters from all over the country were in action.
According to a statement by the Garden Route District Municipality's Joint Operational Centre (JOC) the fire is currently 90% contained, with some areas smouldering at Diepwalle, Kransbos and valleys at Jonkersberg. Teams have been placed at these areas to monitor any flare-ups. Four Working On Fire (WoF) teams from Cape Town will be released from this area as they are entering their fire season at the moment. The eight additional WoF teams from the Free State will remain in the area to assist with mopping-up operations until next week Wednesday, 14 November.
The Incident Management Team continued as normal and a re-assessment will be done today, 8 November, to determine their action going forward. The Overberg and West Coast District Municipality teams returned to their respective towns yesterday.
For any enquiries please contact the emergency call centre on 044 805 5071.
Read a previous article | Wednesday: Garden Route fires update
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