UPDATED NEWS: Three more women died in hospital due to their injuries.
One woman died instantly and two others later in hospital when a runaway veld fire trapped them in the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve late Monday afternoon. Nine women between the ages of 30 and 50 years old were harvesting grass in the nature reserve just outside Heidelberg when they were overcome by flames.
The harvesting forms part of a community project where women from Zonkizizwe and Magagula Heights are allowed to harvest grass annually. According to Captain Thivhulawi Tshilate (spokesperson) from Heidelberg SAPS the women noticed the fire at around 15:45 coming towards them very quickly. A strong wind fueled the flames in their direction and they could not manage to get to safety in time.
Emergency services from Lesedi and Ekurhuleni were dispatched to the scene, but one of the women had already died. Four others were seriously injured and taken to Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital in Soweto where two of them later succumbed to their injuries. Three of the women are still in a serious condition. (These three have now also succumbed to their injuries)
Police are investigating the cause of the fire.
