CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) – Fire crews on Tuesday contained a large fire on the mountain slopes of the Cape Town table, as the city began accepting the damage caused by what officials described as one of the worst flames in the area in years.
About 90 percent of the fire had been contained, Table Mountain National Park authority said, but only after firefighters returned to work overnight and spent a third day fighting the flames.
These firefighters faced “extreme circumstances” overnight, said the organization Working on Fire, which specializes in fire treatment and has been helping city firefighters. The operation in Table Mountain had already reached the “mop-up” stage, Working on Fire said.
Firefighting helicopters dropped water on areas where the fire still smoked and smoked on the rocky peaks of Table Mountain. South African army helicopters joined the operation to support the fire brigade after all helicopters were landed on Monday due to strong winds.
The winds had calmed down, but there was still thick smoke over the city and fire crews were monitoring the outbreaks.
“Our first priority remains to completely extinguish all lines of fire,” local government official Anton Bredell said. “Then, over the next few days, firefighters will continue to cushion the affected areas and monitor for outbreaks until we are 100% sure the fire has been extinguished.
“Once the fire is extinguished, the investigation into the cause of the fire will be carried out.”
Forest fires are reasonably frequent in the mountains and peaks of Cape Town during the hot, dry summer months and are especially dangerous and unpredictable when fed by strong coastal winds.
Sometimes they explode due to heat and dry terrain, and others are the result of fires caused by people blowing out of control.
This fire started early on Sunday and, fueled by the strong wind, swept and crossed the mountain slopes towards the residential areas facing the center of Cape Town.
Neighborhoods were evacuated, while firefighters kept the flame mostly at a distance and away from homes, sometimes just a few feet away. About 250 firefighters were mobilized.
In all, 11 buildings were destroyed, six firefighters were injured fighting the blaze and nine more people have been treated for respiratory problems due to smoke inhalation, city officials said.
The Cape Town University campus was one of the first sites affected and appears to have suffered the most damage. Numerous university buildings were burned, including part of a nearly 100-year-old library that contained rare books and manuscripts on African studies. The university said some of these “priceless” works had been lost, but it was still unclear how much.
Other nearby historic buildings were also burned, including a 225-year-old windmill and a renowned restaurant and tea room, near a memorial to British colonial politician Cecil Rhodes.
In the tea room, there were half-full plates and cups sitting on charred tables among the ruins, showing how customers and staff had been forced to flee suddenly. Small fires were still burning in the nearby forest.
The South African government said a residence owned by its Department of Public Works and Infrastructure was completely destroyed by fire. The house was empty at the time, but family members of a national minister and two deputy ministers had to be evacuated from their nearby homes. The fire also approached the Cape Town residence of South African Vice President David Mabuza, the government said.
About 600 acres (1,482 acres) of land had been burned, according to Table Mountain National Park Authority estimates.