Community leader responds to Sundowner house fire

A house fire in Sundowner devastated a local home, but quick actions by Matthew van der Berg, an active resident and chairman of the Sundowner Residents Community Association, helped mitigate further damage and ensured the safety of bystanders. Van der Berg, who arrived swiftly on the scene, played a crucial role in managing the situation until emergency services arrived.

Van der Berg, who has a rich history of involvement in emergency services said, “I’ve always somehow been involved in EMS. I was a SAPS reservist for the greater part of 10 years and when I resigned to be more involved with my family, I felt an intrinsic need to still be able to help my community, which led me to the Community Group Firefighters Association.”

His experience and training as a firefighter, coupled with his leadership roles, made him a key figure during the incident. “I became involved as a trainee firefighter, helping with fire and I also run the Sundowner community neighbourhood watch. Along with being the chairman and director of the Sundowner Residents Community Association, where we strive for a safe and tight-knit community,” he added.

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Describing the critical actions he took upon arrival, Van der Berg noted, “When I arrived on the scene I suited up in my bunker gear, cleared the road, mobilised all the neighbourhood watch members to keep the road clear and found a working fire hydrant. This saved countless minutes when the city’s EMS arrived because not only could they get to the incident unhindered, but they were well informed of hydrants and what they needed to fight the fire.”

Van der Berg emphasised the importance of calmness and control in emergencies. “The most important thing in any emergency is to remain calm. There is always panic and stress, but as a first responder, you have to remain calm and take control of the situation. For example, to make sure all the emergency vehicles have space to get to the scene, move bystanders back, create defendable space and not have anyone who isn’t trained in the environment where they can get hurt.”

The incident highlighted the preparedness of the Sundowner community. “In a community-driven initiative in Sundowner, we have now marked the fire hydrant locations. We have also diligently checked if every marked hydrant is functioning or not. For those that aren’t, we have reported them to Joburg Water, specifying what the issue is so they can be repaired accordingly.”

Van der Berg also shared crucial safety tips for residents to prevent and respond to fires. “Know where your fire hydrants are and report broken or leaking hydrants to Joburg Water and the fire department.” He encouraged residents to be safe, and double-check gas stoves, heaters and fireplaces.

“Make sure your thatch is serviced and sprayed for fire protection. If there is a fire, get out of the house and make sure you are not close to the home if it’s burning – a safe distance is a safe person. When emergency services arrive, notify them who was in the house, if anybody is still inside, pets you may have, where the biggest risk may be.”

Lastly, Van der Berg encouraged residents to let professionals do the job. “Please don’t try and be a hero. Let the professionals do the job. Incidents like this are life and death if handled incorrectly and all first responders want is for you to be safe.”

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