His laptop, his dog, his cat and one set of clothing is all that Makhanda resident Graham Reed managed to take from the place he’s called home for the best part of a decade. Speaking from his temporary refuge with friends on Wednesday, he was still in shock after a runaway fire destroyed his home on the outskirts of Makhanda on Tuesday afternoon. Driven by winds close to 50km/h, the fire tore across the tinder dry mountainside in 30 degree heat, threatening homes and PJ Olivier High School at the top; and homes, Makana Resort and the Makana Parks Department at the bottom. Fire fighters who were first on the scene had to spread their resources. Making the situation much worse was the fact that the town was a week into a forced water outage.
“I have lost absolutely everything,” said Reed, whose house was part of the Park Homes complex at the south-west end of Grey Street, at the foot of Mountain Drive. Reed’s home and his neighbour’s were destroyed in the blaze that began late morning. Friends said the neighbour was still too traumatised to speak.
Reed, who works from home, described the utter abandonment and helplessness he felt.
“Around 1pm I started smelling smoke,” he said. He and a different neighbour went to investigate.
“We saw smoke some distance away and we called the fire department,” he said. “That was around 1.30pm.”
But Reed didn’t see any help arriving at his house.
An hour and a half later, with no water in the taps, he watched helplessly as his neighbour’s house was razed and his own was engulfed in flames.
“It was too late when a small fire truck arrived at my house.”
More fire fighting resources had arrived later, preventing the other homes in the park from igniting.
“I’ve just been back there now and there is nothing to salvage,” Reed said on Wednesday morning. “Everything is smashed or melted or just ash. There’s nothing left for me. I need to clean up and get out.”
It’s been his home for the best part of the past 13 years. Adding to his heartbreak was that the previous day, he’d had to take his older dog to be euthanased.
“At least I managed to get my other dog and cat out safely,” he said. “I am devastated, but pointing fingers won’t change anything.”
It’s not certain what living arrangements Reed and his neighbour will variously pursue; however, collection points for donations have been established at the premises of security companies Hi-Tec and Smhart, the Red Cross in Bathurst Street, Makhanda and Salon Gavroche at 135 High Street.
Working on Fire and others assist
Makana Municipality spokesperson Anele Mjekula said the fire services had received a call alerting them to a fire in Grey Street at 13h22.
“On arrival, the fire crew reported that the fire was moving very fast uphill, fanned by a strong gusting wind towards Rockridge Road and PJ Olivier High School and surrounding houses.”
Mjekula said the crews had responded to protect nearby houses and the school and that additional staff members had been called in to assist. The fire had then moved towards the N2 behind Hillsview Road.
“The fire was brought under control. Unfortunately, a thatch roof lapa and [Park Homes] were destroyed by the fire,” Mjekula said.
While the teams were busy with the Grey Street fire, another report was received of a bushfire at Green Hiills on the Peddie Road.
“A crew was dispatched, and the fire was burning in the valley with no access. Working on Fire was dispatched from Ndlambe to assist at Green Hills. They had a crew of 11 fire fighters.”
Makana Fire crews monitored both areas throughout the night.
“The Grey Street fire had a lot of stumps still burning in the burnt area. Fire Department Chief, Mr William Welkom, thanked the public for their assistance for all the assistance they received. Assistance was received from Frontier Fire Assist, Rhodes University, Mike’s Driving School and members of the public,” Mjekula said.
The fire at Greenhills was still being monitored on Wednesday, as strong winds returned.
Tuesday’s fire occurred after many parts of Makhanda had been without water for days, a situation that continued on Wednesday in many parts of the town. Water tankers were used to battle Tuesday’s blaze.
The cause of the week-long water outage was reportedly a work stoppage by Makana staff after they failed to receive overtime payments. A letter seen by Talk of the Town signed by Makana’s chief financial officer indicated that Makana had had to choose between paying workers overtime or financing its Eskom debt. According to the letter dated August 8, Makana Municipality must pay Eskom R57,989,912.20 to be compliant with its conditions of debt relief.
The widespread work stoppage has affected most municipal services, with many areas reporting no water for close to a week and *uncollected garbage piling up on the town’s streets.
With the mountain ablaze above, and Gift of the Givers staff setting off to get water to desperate communities, on the other side of Church Square, around 50 people under the banner of the Unemployed People’s Movement protested outside the city hall and handed over a memorandum of demands. Protesters placards demanded street lights, an end to bucket toilets, and an end to gender based violence, among other demands.
Attempts to get confirmation from Makana Municipality and SAMWU on the stoppage and the contents of the letter have so far been unsuccessful.
Gift of the Givers dispatched two water tankers to Makhanda on Tuesday, in response to desperate pleas for help. Old age homes and eNkanini informal settlement were among the vulnerable populations they assisted first when they arrived around midday on Tuesday. Communal tanks were to have been filled next.
*Residents reported that waste was being collected today (THursday).
