If fires occur six, seven times on the same farm, one gets suspicious,” he said.The problem was exacerbated by the good rains, which resulted in excellent grass covering, and by the fact that most fire protection associations in the province are still not in place, despite ongoing petitions to local governments, he added.
Leon Bellingan, the Vryburg District Farmers Union manager, said over 30 000ha were destroyed in the Vryburg district early in September in a fire started by a farmer building a kraal. He estimated damages to be “millions of rand” and said they appreciate all the offers of animal feed they’ve received, but getting the feed to the farmers is a problem. “Game farmers also suffered huge losses, as game got lost in the mayhem,” he added.
Paul du Plessis, chairperson of the Ottosdal District Farmers Union, said 99% of the fires in that district were caused by arson. “At least 8 000ha of natural veld and planted pastures were destroyed through arson,” he said. “We’ve had cases of eight fires on the same farm. That’s a sure sign of arson. This was the worst ever fire season I’ve experienced, with 40 fires occurring until the end of September. But I can’t say what the motives for the arson are.”
Agri North West president Cor Janse van Vuuren called on landowners to act more responsibly. “It’s their duty to see to it that firebreaks are in place and well maintained. Remember, no farmer can claim damages from his neighbour if firebreaks weren’t in place, even if the neighbour was responsible for the fire,” he said.Frik van Rensburg, fire chief of the Maquassi Hills municipality, said 70% of the fires in the Leeudoringstad, Makwassie and Wolmaransstad districts were caused by arson. Some 7 000ha were destroyed by fires there.
