The Rand West Emergency Services has its own Working on Fire (WoF) team that attends to and tackles veld fires, as well as preserves property and the environment in cases of fire.
Stationed at Emergency Service’s offices in Randfontein, the team provides a complementary service as the existing firefighters mostly attend to structural fires.
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According to Rand West Emergency Services Fire Chief Benny Mohlabeng, “The WoF team is a great addition to our resources in terms of personnel, and assists a great deal in fighting veld fires. They are tasked with that and are experts in that department, while the rescue team attends to structural fires and house fires.
This helps us to separate the two in cases of emergency, and enables us to dispatch the right team to a scene, depending on the circumstances,” said Mohlabeng.
WoF, an Expanded Public Works Programme, was established in 2003 in different parts of the country and the Rand West Emergency Services has had its own WoF team since March this year.
Another part of their assignment is to conduct awareness campaigns in and around the different communities and inform them about the dangers of fire. The team also helps with fire prevention and fire protection, as well as preserving property and protecting the environment. This is done by ensuring that veld fires are safely contained and extinguished to prevent them from spreading further and causing more damage.
Mohlabeng also highlighted the importance that community members be specific when seeking the fire department’s assistance.
People need to be more specific when calling out fire services and stipulate if it’s a veld fire or house fire that they need assistance with. This will enable us to dispatch the appropriate team and deal with the incident effectively,” said Mohlabeng.
He added that the WoF services are also available to farmers within the West Rand at a certain fee should they need assistance with making fire breaks as required by law.
Mohlabeng further urged people to refrain from discarding cigarette butts irresponsibly which often cause veld fires, and warned that should perpetrators be identified they would pay the price.
“People who start veld fires will face the consequences. Should there be evidence that links the fire to a particular individual, the person will be held liable to pay for the services of WoF which would have attended to the scene,” said Mohlabeng.
