Wellington fire blazes into third day as crews battle to protect farms

The wildfire that erupted near Wellington, in the Western Cape Winelands has entered its third day of burning, with emergency crews continuing their battle against the flames.

Cape Winelands District Municipality’s fire services reported early Thursday morning that the fire remains uncontained despite ongoing efforts.

Firefighting crews faced significant challenges throughout Wednesday night as they worked to control active fire lines across the affected area.

“The firefighting crews, assisted by ground teams from NCC and CapeNature, had their hands full last night as they engaged in active firefighting on all the lines,” the Cape Winelands District Municipality stated in their 6:00 am update on Thursday.

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Wellington fire property protection efforts

The fire lines above Rooshoek and Oaklands farms presented particular difficulty during the night hours, according to municipal officials.

Despite these challenges, teams successfully prevented damage to properties in the area.

At Foxenberg, local landowners took proactive measures by creating fire breaks to prevent flames from spreading downhill onto valuable agricultural land.

Weather concerns

While reduced wind speeds overnight created more favourable conditions for firefighters, authorities expressed concern about changing weather patterns forecast for Thursday.

“The wind subsided during the night, making for improved firefighting conditions. However, the fire continues to burn out of control,” the municipality noted.

“The weather services predict a change in the wind direction, which, together with the high temperatures, is cause for concern, as this increases the likelihood of flare-ups.”

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Coordinated response

Cape Winelands District Municipality spokesperson Jo-Anne Otto confirmed that firefighters spent most of Wednesday night attempting to contain the blaze that began on Tuesday.

The early morning update indicated that resource deployment planning would commence once daylight allowed crews to fully evaluate the affected terrain.

Currently, teams from NCC Wildfires, CapeNature, and Drakenstein Municipality remain on scene, while the Winelands Fire Protection Association coordinates activities with local farmers.

The municipality has scheduled its next official update for noon on Thursday as the situation continues to develop.

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Wednesday evening fire assessment

The fire had already been burning for a full day when Cape Winelands District Municipality’s fire services provided an update on Wednesday evening.

“Although the CWDM’s fire services report that good progress is being made, but that the fire, which continues to be fuelled by a combination of vegetation and wind, is still active,” the municipality reported in their 5pm update on Wednesday, 19 February.

Wellington fire management

Due to the extensive burned area, firefighting teams had divided the fire into separate sections.

According to the municipality, “Teams divided the fire into separate sections, listed Divisions A, which starts at Oaklands and Twyfeling farms up to an area called Division D, burning between the farms Fondelings and Vrugbaar. All the divisions still have active fire lines.”

Terrain challenges

The challenging terrain complicated firefighting efforts from the beginning.

Some divisions were burning against the wind, while others were difficult to access due to the mountainous landscape. In more accessible areas, teams attempted to suppress the fire line by creating fire breaks.

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