Fire threatens FS town
2008-10-15 18:39
Bloemfontein - A veld fire on Wednesday afternoon threatened to engulf Clarens in the eastern Free State, Working on Fire (WoF) personnel said.
Roelof Geyser, Free State manager of WoF, issued a fire alert at 16:00 saying firefighters were battling to control a blaze threatening to engulf the town.
Geyser said WoF had deployed a number of veld fire teams.
"A WoF helicopter has been summoned from Vryheid and the South African Air Force has sent an Oryx helicopter from Bloemfontein to assist ground crews by dropping water to cool the fire."
The fire threatening Clarens started near Fouriesburg on Tuesday.
Geyser said the fire was under control and almost out when it flared up again on Wednesday morning after windy conditions.
He said temperatures in the area were extremely high and there was a slight wind.
Geyser said if the wind died down firefighters had a better chance of containing the fire.
It was estimated that between 8 000ha and 10 000ha of veld had been burned.
- SAPA