Another Fire Update

There is an eerie calm in Vredehoek as some residents begin to return home after a night of drama. A fire that started near Rhodes Memorial at about 8pm on Tuesday night spread quickly as it was fanned by strong winds. By 01:00 the streets of Vredehoek were jammed with people packing their possessions into their cars, ready for a speedy getaway. With the sky glowing red, many onlookers were taking photographs, while trying to cover their eyes and mouths from the suffocating smoke. Other residents stood, watching in horror as the flames edged ever closer to peoples' homes. Fire engines had to fight through fleeing cars to get near the flames, as police vehicles drove up and down streets calling for people to evacuate their homes.As the police cordoned off streets, groups of people huddled together, watching the chaos and wondering what to do next. There was panic in Chelmsford Road as residents fled on foot and in their cars, while above their heads the flames licked the area around the base of The Towers. The fire in Vredehoek seems under control, with firefighters dousing stumps and glowing embers to prevent any flames from starting up again. The air is thick with uncertainty and smoke as some residents return home, while the fire can still be seen on the slopes of Devil's Peak and Table Mountain.

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Latest Reports - Table Mountain Fire

Cape Town - A fire was raging out of control on the slopes of Table Mountain on Wednesday morning and residents in High Cape and University Estate have had to flee their homes The fire broke out at about 20:30 just below the Rhodes memorial and it was initially feared it might spread to the upper campus of the University of Cape Town. However, no evacuations were needed at Ikeys. "There is an area of bush and grass on Table Mountain behind the University of Cape Town and near Vredehoek where the fire began," fire commander Ignatius Smart told Sapa. "It has spread to surrounding areas and is not under control as yet. "Three fire-fighters have been injured after falling on the mountain slopes," he said. Smart added that about 135 firefighters, disaster management officials and police were battling the blze. The fire was being fanned by strong winds, said fire and rescue's Deon Smit. De Waal Drive was closed for traffic at 00:15. Loudhailers were used to order residents of High Cape to evacuate as flames licked at the buildings. Long queues of cars formed as residents tried to escape the inferno. Helena Kolbe of University Estate said residents living six blocks above De Waal Drive were told to get out. Simon Hanson and a security guard had walked door-to-door to tell the residents to leave.

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