400 people rescued after fire breaks out at Table Mountain cableway [VIDEO]

Around 400 people were safely rescued after a fire broke out at the Table Mountain lower cableway station on Tafelberg Road, Cape Town, on Thursday afternoon.

The visitors who were on Table Mountain at the time of the fire were initially kept at the upper cableway station due to the thick smoke.

Watch the fire at the Table Mountain lower cableway

Table Mountain cableway station was on fire today… 400 people were stuck on the mountain pic.twitter.com/LTRqeMt4jK

— T𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗚𝗼𝗮𝘁 (@GiveawayGoat) October 24, 2024

Fire

South African National Parks (SANParks) spokesperson JP Louw said the fire started inside a garage in the building just before lunchtime, leaving some staff and visitors stranded.

“A fire that broke out at the Table Mountain National Park cableway lower cable station has been contained and guests and staff were safely evacuated.  

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“The City of Cape Town fire department managed this structural fire while Table Mountain National Park fire crew supported in the surrounding vegetation,” Louw said.

Evacuation

Louw said while guests and staff from the lower cable station were safely evacuated with no injuries, it took a bit longer for those at the top of the mountain.

“A number of guests chose to walk down Platteklip Gorge to evacuate before the cable car was operational and were assisted on the trail by SANParks rangers. 

“The SANParks ground crew also attended to wild fires on the lower slopes of Signal Hill, as well as the area above the upper block house on Devils Peak and at Kloofnek corner. No persons were present at these locations. All fires are now contained and mopping up operations are underway,” Louw said.

Table Mountain

In April, the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) closed Tafelberg Road after Lower Cable Station as it was conducting a prescribed biodiversity burn of 10 hectares.

Fire crews remained on the scene post-fire to ensure mopping up operations took place until fire management deemed the area safe.

The Western Cape battled several wildfires in December last year, which were fuelled by a combination of mixed alien vegetation and strong winds.

Earlier this year, the City of Cape Town’s fire and rescue department attended to a fire that had been started in Gordon’s Bay while another one flared up in Slangkop before another blaze was reported in Simon’s Town.

Additional reporting by Vhahangwele Nemakonde

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