POLOKWANE – Polokwane Municipality’s emergency services last week successfully contained a veld fire in the south eastern corner of the local game reserve with the assistance of the public.
Spokesperson for the municipality, Thipa Selala confirmed that a veld fire originated at Palmietfontein, next to the game reserve.
“Fire services were dispatched at 18:05 and managed to contain and fully extinguish the fire by 23:30. The total time taken to extinguish the fire was approximately five hours and twenty minutes and we are pleased to report that there were no injuries to animals or other property to our knowledge, except for some of the bush on the south eastern corner of the reserve,” Selala said and added that one of the main challenges faced during the firefighting efforts was the lack of direct access from Palmietfontein to the game reserve.
“This required our team to coordinate with local property owners on the side of the plots and enter the game reserve through its main entrance, adding some delay in reaching the affected area within the reserve. Our teams worked swiftly to prevent further spread and are thankful for the cooperation from residents,” he said.
