BuaNews (Tshwane)
Sydney Masinga
3 September 2008
Nelspruit — Three more people have been burnt in the 54 wildfires that have swept across Mpumalanga since Saturday.
The three injured men were in the Sappi Escarpment forest on Monday when they were caught in a fire and brought the number of people injured in the blazes to 26.
"All the fires were contained on Monday and we have spotted only one fire in Orighstad on Tuesday, while another one was spotted in Swaziland," said Andre Scheepers, regional spokesperson for the Working on Fire (WoF) programme.
Five of the 26 injured are in a critical condition while the rest, including the three who were injured on Monday, have been treated for minor injuries.
The wildfires have destroyed 33 000 hectares of land, 15 000 of which are commercial forestry plantations.
Three people have also died in the blazes and include a 44-year-old female firefighter who burnt to death in the Berlin plantation in Ngodwana, near Nelspruit, on Sunday afternoon.
"She and 15 colleagues were called to extinguish a fire at the plantation," said Ngodwana police spokesperson, Constable Ngwako Kgofelo.
He said the truck in which they were travelling was quickly encircled by fire driven by heavy winds.
"Everyone started jumping off the truck and she fell and was trapped. She burned beyond recognition, along with the truck. The others sustained burn wounds," he said.
The woman's family was finally contacted on Tuesday.
Spokesperson for the provincial Local Government Department, Simphiwe Kunene, has urged community members to report all fires to the provincial disaster management centre.
"We also urge people not to start any fires in the open or to burn litter or throw away cigarette stubs in the veld or leave any fires unattended," he said.
Motorists are also urged to be extremely cautious as some roads are engulfed in thick smoke, which limits visibility.
"Motorists are urged to avoid areas with fire and heavy smoke," Mr Kunene cautioned.
All 23 of Mpumalanga's municipalities are on full alert and prepared to respond quickly to reports of fire outbreaks, said Mr Kunene.
Last year, veld fires raged across the province from late July and into August, killing 13 people, including six firefighters.
Another 27 people were injured, livestock was killed and 40 200 hectares of plantations and 16 000 hectares of grazing fields were destroyed.
Product sales and timber losses in Mpumalanga's forestry industry was estimated to be about R3.5 billion.
The provincial disaster management centre can be contacted on 0800 202 507.
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