Shack Fire In Nomzamo – The Church Responds

A large fire swept through an area in Nomzamo completely destroying nearly 500 shacks, home to approximately 2,000 people.

The fire started at around 4 a.m. and was difficult to control due to the strong winds. Firemen from Strand worked for many hours to dampen down the smoke and flames.

The shacks were packed tightly together causing the fire to spread rapidly. Many homes use parrafin stoves which added fuel to the fire.

Helderberg On Fire - Yet Again!

The Helderberg is on fire again!

After the horrific fires of two years ago when just about everything on the Hottentots Holland mountains was burnt between Gordon's Bay and Jonkershoek we'd have hoped we might have learnt our lessons.  Apparently not!

Word locally is that the Erinvale estate had a 'controlled' fire earlier in the week and today's fire is a result of a flare up from the controlled fire. So much for controlled, if it's true.

Table Mountain Fire

You should have heard on the news about the fire on the slopes of Table Mountain which is causing huge destruction to the Nature Reserve there. Sadly, the fire appears to have been started by an idiotic British tourist who flicked a cigarette end out of his car window. Thankfully a local guide saw him and made a note of his registration number and the police caught him.

On Fire - Yet Again!

We awoke to a bizarre kind of orangey light streaming in through the bathroom window this morning. It was very strange and we couldn't figure it out at first, but then we began to realise that the air was thick with smoke - again!

It was when we went outside however that we began to realise how bad things were. The garden looked like it had been sprinkled with snow but in actual fact it was all covered with ash.

Emyezweni Christmas Party

On Friday I had the privilege of entertaining the children at Emyezweni Pre-School in Lwandle. This seems to have become a bit of a tradition but it's a lot of fun and the children really appreciate it. This year I had my fire clubs fixed so I was able to juggle with fire too. As you could imagine it was a real hit and the children requested that I juggle fire again at the end.

Twinkle Tots At The Fire Station

Joel went with Twinkle Tots to the local fire station this morning and had a great time, despite the awful weather. Joel was a bit disappointed not to see Fireman Sam but was quite pleased to see Fireman Michael who is a real fireman. All the kids seemed to have a great time and there was an unusually good turnout of dads!

Helderberg On Fire - Yet Again!

The Helderberg on fire once again!

This one started a few days ago and the fire crews have been battling to get it under control for a while. Sadly, despite using helicopters to water bomb it they don't seem to be winning. Thankfully the wind has dropped a bit which should help. The mountain is largely obscured by the smoke during the day and the air is thick with the smell of it.

Previous posts on this: Feb 08 & Oct 07

Weekend

We've had a lot of fun this weekend mostly chillin' out at home. Dean went riding on Saturday morning so Paula took the boys to the gym for an hour and then onto the Nature Reserve so they could watch the emergency helicopter loading up with water before heading onto the fire on the Helderberg again. The helicopter filled up every 7 or 8 minutes so the boys were in paradise watching it coming in so closely. Sadly Dean had the camera with him so no photos of that.

Fire!

Three wild fires are raging locally between Sir Lowry's Pass and the Schapenberg which is right on our doorstep.

The emergency choppers have been out for most of the afternoon doing their best to douse the flames but the wind is really vicious and they have now been grounded.

The pic here is looking from outside our house up the Schapenberg and it really is looking bleak.

Township Riots

International news agencies have been running stories of township violence in South Africa over the last few days. What is particularly shocking is that this violence is purely discriminatory as it's directed at foreigners living in the townships. Nigerians, Somalians and Zimbabweans seem to be some of the worst affected. In essence the people in these townships are behaving exactly the same as the white oppressor did during the apartheid years, this is the real tragedy!

Pirate Experience

After a great morning in church we took the boys for a half-term treat to the Boswell Wilkie Circus Pirate experience just outside Cape Town. Wow, what a show! The boys were spell bound by it and were on the edge of their seats all the way through.

It was a real surprise for the boys and we smuggled along all their pirate dressing up clothes so they were able to get into role for the show.

Dean really appreciated the skill of the jugglers whilst we all marveled at the sheer athleticism of all the performers. If the circus is ever passing your way make it a priority to go and see!

Buttonquail Camping (sort of)

We've just had a wonderfully relaxing couple of nights away at Buttonquail Nature Reserve about 30 minutes from home. This was the prize dean won in the parents bike race at the boy's school recently. We knew Buttonquail was remote but weren't prepared for just how remote! As we began the descent into the valley we realised that simply popping back into town was not a realistic option so we felt forced to stay put. Shame! Amazingly in this modern age the reserve has no electricity other than a bit of solar generated stuff for night lights and there was no cell phone reception. Fantastic!!!!!!

Fire On The Helderberg - Again

Some idiot/s started a fire on the Helderberg late in the afternoon and firefighters have been battling all night to put it out. From our house it looks like their just about getting the upperhand, but their not being helped by a very strong Southeast wind. I'm not into corporal punishment, but when these arsonists are caught each resident of Somerset West should be able to beat the c**p out of them for 5 minutes, that would deter them.

Nomzamo Fire - Unsung Heroes

Following last weeks fire in Nomzamo, our local rag the District Mail ran the above article on the ladies who have been working tirelessly for the community, co-ordinating donations and sorting them out ready for distribution. Sindi (back row 2nd from right) is a former church member of ours and we still work very closely with her, she's worth her weight in gold!

Fire In Nomzamo

After church on Sunday morning we received news that there had been a big fire in Nomzamo which had swept through the informal settlement part of the community destroying almost 600 shacks leaving upto 3000 people homeless. We immediately spoke to our church leaders and the cell group leaders with a view to obtaining as many donations as possible of blankets, clothing food and money. In the short term these things will really help.

Firewood

Once again I'm ridiculously excited to get our winter wood pile sorted.  The fact that they deliver & stack the wood is an added bonus.

Here we have 1000 pieces of bluegum, which should see us through winter quite nicely as they disappear in to the wood-burning stove, our only source of heating in the house.

Emyezweni Christmas Party

It hardly seems possible that a year has slipped past since I last entertained the kids at the Emyezweni Christmas party in Lwandle, but that year has shot past and here we are posting about it again.

I really enjoy being asked to entertain the kids and count it a real privilege to invest a tiny amount in the lives of these kids.

As ever they were a fantastically appreciative audience and certainly know how to make one feel good! The simplest tricks continue to be the most appreciated. The fire juggling is a huge hit, but the unicycling and diabolo are also popular. Climb the string is the simplest of diabolo tricks but probably the most appreciated. Throwing the diabolo is also great, the higher the better! Each year I try to do something different, so last year I used my fire clubs for the first time and this year I used my juggling rings which went down very well. Next year could be a bit tricky.

Helicopters & Fire

There have been lots of fires in the Western Cape this summer and things are set to get a lot worst as we've just entered another drought period, although the drought shouldn't be as bad as last year. Late last week there was a huge fire in Grabouw which is just the other side of the mountains and shortly before that there was one in Franschoek which apparently destroyed an area the size of 40,000 football pitches!

Mountain Biking

I generally manage to go twice a week and sometimes manage three rides. On a Tuesday and Thursday I go with some friends up Sir Lowry's Pass, following the railway servitude road. The ride is great and there is a fantastic stretch of downhill on which we once clocked 75kph!

Blogging From A To Z Challenge - M

M is for Macassar

Macassar is the town in which we serve the local church with Tree Of Life Church. We've been involved in Macassar for just over three years and love it. Most of our white friends here in Somerset West are horrified at the thought of us going into Macassar and very few white South Africans would dare to tread in such a place. The reality however is quite refreshing.

A bit of history...