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The '''2021 Table Mountain fire''' (also known as the '''Rhodes Memorial fire'''<ref name="news24.uct" /> or '''Cape Town fire'''{{r|GroundUp-19April}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=DEVELOPING {{!}} Cape Town fire 'not out of the woods yet', UCT suspends classes until 23 April|url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/developing-strong-winds-fan-cape-town-fire-further-evacuations-underway-20210419|access-date=2021-04-20|website=News24|language=en-US}}</ref>) is a major fire that started on 18 April 2021<ref name="news24.restaurant" /> in and around ] and the neighbo<!-- south african spelling uses 'u' -->urhoods of ],<ref name="news24.uct" /> ], ] and ] in ], ]. The damage to sites in the ] area <!-- File:Geology_of_Cape_Peninsula_1.jpg illustrates location of table mountain --> included the ], where a restaurant <!-- that sells coffee and has a tea garden --> burned down; the upper campus of the ] (UCT),<ref name="bbcnews_18apr21" /> where the Special Collections library was gutted; and ], a historic ] that burned down.<ref name="thesouthafrican" /> In addition, five firefighters were hospitalised.{{r|dm1}} The '''2021 Table Mountain fire''' (also known as the '''Rhodes Memorial fire'''<ref name="news24.uct" /> or '''Cape Town fire'''{{r|GroundUp-19April}}<ref>{{Cite web|title=DEVELOPING {{!}} Cape Town fire 'not out of the woods yet', UCT suspends classes until 23 April|url=https://www.news24.com/news24/southafrica/news/developing-strong-winds-fan-cape-town-fire-further-evacuations-underway-20210419|access-date=2021-04-20|website=News24|language=en-US}}</ref>) is a major fire that started on 18 April 2021<ref name="news24.restaurant" /> in and around ] and the neighbo<!-- south african spelling uses 'u' -->urhoods of ],<ref name="news24.uct" /> ], ] and ] in ], ]. The damage to sites in the ] area <!-- File:Geology_of_Cape_Peninsula_1.jpg illustrates location of table mountain --> included the ], where a restaurant <!-- that sells coffee and has a tea garden --> burned down; the upper campus of the ] (UCT),<ref name="bbcnews_18apr21" /> where the Special Collections library was gutted; and ], a historic ] that burned down.<ref name="thesouthafrican" /> In addition, five firefighters were hospitalised.{{r|dm1}}


== Fire and response == <ref></ref>== Fire and response ==


You are weird
The wildfire started on the morning of 18 April 2021 near Rhodes Memorial, ] in Table Mountain National Park.{{r|usnews}} Firefighters were alerted at {{nowrap|08:45 ]}} {{nowrap|(06:45 ])}}.<ref name="news24.restaurant" /><ref name="bbcnews_18apr21" /> The fire was reported to have been started by a vagrant,<ref name="timeslive" /> and spread through old pine trees and debris, generating its own wind,<ref name="news24.uct" /> towards the university campus and city.<ref name="timeslive" /> There was an extreme fire danger alert on the same day, with high temperature and low humidity.<ref name="news24.uct" />

Initially, the resulting smoke and wind updrafts caused by the fire prevented aerial firefighting support from being deployed.<ref name=":22" /> Later, over 250 firefighters<ref name=":2">{{Cite news|last=Wroughton|first=Lesley|title=South Africa wildfire burns University of Cape Town, library of antiquities|language=en-US|work=Washington Post|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2021/04/18/south-africa-fire-university-cape-town/|access-date=2021-04-19|issn=0190-8286}}</ref> were involved in fighting the fire and four helicopters were used to drop water onto the fire.<ref name="news24.uct" /><ref name=":0" />

By 14:10 SAST,<ref name=":4" /> students at the University of Cape Town were evacuated.<ref name="iol_evac" /> Official warnings were issued for hikers in the ] area of Table Mountain National Park to also evacuate.<ref name="timeslive_evac" /><ref name="news24.restaurant" /> At 16:05 SAST, ] (SANParks) announced that the restaurant at Rhodes Memorial had been destroyed in the fire.<ref name=":4" /> The ] was also closed, with the fire spreading to the other side of it.<ref name="iol_restaurant" />

On 19 April 2021 (8:00 SAST) homes in the ], ] and ] area of Cape Town were evacuated as a precautionary measure.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="TimesLive-19April">{{cite news |last1=Keeton |first1=Claire |title=UPDATE Cape Town fire 'largely contained at this stage' |url=https://www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2021-04-19-update-cape-town-fire-largely-contained-at-this-stage/ |access-date=19 April 2021 |agency=Times Live}}</ref> This included the evacuation of the ] residential complex.<ref name="dm1"/>

By 15:00 SAST on {{dts|2021.04.19|format=dm}}, firefighters reported that the fire had been "largely contained".{{r|TimesLive-19April}}


== Casualties and damage == == Casualties and damage ==

Revision as of 12:24, 20 April 2021

Cape Town fire that destroyed historic mill and library collections
Graphic of a globe with a red analog clockThis article documents a fire. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. Feel free to improve this article or discuss changes on the talk page, but please note that updates without valid and reliable references will be removed. (April 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

2021 Cape Town fire
Fire trucks on the Hospital Bend interchange going into the City Bowl on 19 April
Date(s)18 April 2021; 3 years ago (2021-04-18)
08:45 SAST (06:45 UTC)
LocationTable Mountain National Park and Southern Suburbs, Cape Town, South Africa
Statistics
Burned areaat least 400 hectares
Land useNational park, university, suburban area
Impacts
Non-fatal injuries5
Map

The 2021 Table Mountain fire (also known as the Rhodes Memorial fire or Cape Town fire) is a major fire that started on 18 April 2021 in and around Table Mountain National Park and the neighbourhoods of Newlands, Rosebank, Mowbray and Rondebosch in Cape Town, South Africa. The damage to sites in the Table Mountain area included the Rhodes Memorial, where a restaurant burned down; the upper campus of the University of Cape Town (UCT), where the Special Collections library was gutted; and Mostert's Mill, a historic windmill that burned down. In addition, five firefighters were hospitalised.

Cite error: There are <ref> tags on this page without content in them (see the help page).== Fire and response ==

You are weird

Casualties and damage

Mostert's Mill in 2012 and the Jagger Library (which houses UCT's Special Collections) in 2015

Firefighters

On 19 April Western Cape Premier Alan Winde stated that a total of five firefighters were hospitalised. At least four of them were hospitalised due to burn injuries.

Rhodes Memorial

The fire burnt down a restaurant at the Rhodes Memorial.

External images
image icon Remains of Jagger Reading Room
image icon Remains of Mostert's Mill

University of Cape Town

Three structures at the campus of the University of Cape Town suffered damage. Also affected was the special collections department of the UCT Libraries system, housed in Jagger Library, part of the research wing of UCT's main library. Although a fire detection system prevented the fire from reaching the rest of the main library, the reading room of Jagger Library was gutted by the flames, and some of the rare collections in the special collections department, which held over 1,300 collections and over 85,000 books and other items, were likely lost.

H.W. Pearson building caught on fire, although the Bolus Herbarium housed within narrowly escaped destruction. Cadboll House, an administrative building, was also badly burnt.

Mostert's Mill

The fire also destroyed the Mostert's Mill, the oldest working windmill in South Africa, built in 1796, and four thatched cottages behind it.

Aftermath

UCT vice-chancellor Mamokgethi Phakeng suspended all academic activities for the two days following the start of the fire. Phakeng says some students could be back in their residences in the next 72 hours, except Smuts and Fuller Halls.

Investigation

On 18 April at 20:10 SAST, a 35-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of starting the blaze.

City of Cape Town mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith stated that the City of Cape Town had received a number of eye witness accounts of "three people walking through the bush, with fires starting as they’re going."

See also

References

  1. ^ Walters, Tiara (19 April 2021). "PYROCENE CAPE: Our Burning Mountain: Blaze lays siege to Cape Town for third consecutive day". Daily Maverick. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  2. ^ Charles, Marvin. "UPDATE | Rhodes memorial fire: Firefighter injured, UCT evacuates students as runaway veldfire rages on". News24.
  3. ^ Hendricks, Ashraf; Stent, James; Geffen, Nathan. "In photos: the grim aftermath of Cape Town's fire". GroundUp. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  4. "DEVELOPING | Cape Town fire 'not out of the woods yet', UCT suspends classes until 23 April". News24. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
  5. Meyer, Warda. "Runaway veld fire: Rhodes Memorial restaurant damaged, hikers and visitors urged to evacuate". News24. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  6. ^ "Table Mountain fire 'burns out of control' in Cape Town". BBC News. 18 April 2021. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  7. ^ "Watch | Cape Town fire: Dreadful scenes as UCT Library goes up in flames". The South African. 18 April 2021.
  8. "Cape Town firefighters continue to battle blaze | eNCA". www.enca.com. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  9. "Rhodes Memorial Restaurant has burnt down, confirms Table Mountain National Park". www.iol.co.za.
  10. Ehlinger, Maija; Formanek, Ingrid; Dean, Sarah; Paget, Sharif. "'Out of control' fire breaks out in Cape Town's Table Mountain National Park". CNN Travel. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  11. "Library Maps | UCT Libraries". www.lib.uct.ac.za. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021.
  12. "About the Libraries | Libraries Special Collections". www.specialcollections.uct.ac.za. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021.
  13. ^ "Two firefighters hospitalised as Cape Town heritage gems including Mostert Mill and UCT library gutted". TimesLIVE.
  14. "A message from @UCTLibrary Executive Director Ujala Satgoor on the fire that devastated the Reading Room of the Jagger Library where @UCTLibrary_SC situated". Twitter. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  15. Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. Craig Hilton-Taylor. "I heard from Callen Cohen that the fire in the Pearson building is out and that the Bolus is safe". Twitter. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  17. Alex Lansdowne. "The top floor was burnt but it did not get to the Herbarium". Twitter. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  18. Sullivan, Helen. "Students evacuate Cape Town university as fire damages historic buildings". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  19. Phakeng, Mamokgethi. "Fire affecting the Rondebosch campus of the University of Cape Town (UCT)". UCT News. Retrieved 18 April 2021.
  20. Qukula, Qama. "'UCT students could return to res - except Smuts and Fuller - within 72 hours'". CapeTown. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  21. McCain, Nicole. "Man arrested as City of Cape Town investigates arson in Table Mountain blaze". News24. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  22. "'Out of control' fire breaks out on Table Mountain". BBC News. Retrieved 19 April 2021.

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