West Rand firefighters return
Brave fighters who put out blazes in Canada were recognised for their help and courage.
The Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mélanie Joly, extended her country’s gratitude towards the South African firefighters from Working on Fire (WoF) based in the West Rand.
She recognised their invaluable assistance in combating wildfires across Canada since 2015. The acknowledgement took place at a reception held at the Canadian High Commissioner’s residence on August 21.
This visit to South Africa formed part of her trip to Africa where she already met with government officials in the Ivory Coast, Pretoria and Johannesburg, including South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Co-operation, Ronald Lamola.
Joly’s engagement in South Africa offered the opportunity to highlight the Canadian and South African shared commitments to democracy, security and prosperity, and to pay tribute to the 30th anniversary of the end of apartheid in South Africa. As part of the Expanded Public Works Programme, the WoF programme has successfully deployed some 1 750 firefighters and management to assist Canada in their wildfire firefighting efforts. These deployments took place in 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2023 and currently in 2024.
In 2023, a deployment of 861 firefighters and management from WoF went to Canada to assist with wildfires in what has been described as one of their worst seasons on record. In recognition of this extraordinary support, the Government of Canada extended a special note of thanks to the South African firefighting teams.
“Last year Canadians were under a lot of stress as we battled historic wildfires that created a lot of anxiety, particularly for communities that had to be displaced, including many indigenous groups. The smoke and smell were affecting the entire territory of Canada, reaching as far as New York City in the USA,” Joly said.
“We needed help and help came from people here who were going through their own winter season.
We were amazed by the work that the firefighters from South Africa did, they caught our imagination and we loved their dancing and it just brought a bit of joy during difficult moments.
“So today we’ve brought you a special note from the government of Canada to say thank you and I know I’m talking on behalf of 41 million Canadians.”
Managing director of WoF Treveor Abrahams said that the recognition award highlights the success of their six deployments to Canada during some of that country’s most challenging wildfire seasons.
