Arthur Greene
Several people have been injured, crops have been scorched and hundreds of cattle have been burnt alive in wIldfires which have spread across 100km of the Northern Cape this week.
Firefighters have struggled to prevent the flames from spreading since they were discovered over the weekend.
The blaze is fast approaching Kimberley, and now lies just 10km from the Northern Cape’s biggest city.
They are also approaching Hopetown and Magersfontein, and one of the fires has crossed into the Free State.
At least two people, a firefighter and a civilian, have been hospitalised due to smoke inhalation and burn wounds, according to TimesLIVE.
The Free State umbrella fire protection association told the publication that agricultural and tourism infrastructure had been destroyed or severely damaged.
“Local landowners have been attempting suppression of both fires from inception and are completely overrun and unable to bring the fire under control or to contain the spread under the present conditions,” Spokesperson Savage Breytenbach said.
Apocalyptic footage of the fires showing miles upon miles of inferno, burning crops and perished cattle have been circulating widely on social media.
But many online have noted their lack of surprise at the wildfires, following a global summer of natural disasters.
Climate scientists have long warned that the climate crisis will lead to more frequent extreme weather events and natural disasters across the globe, and now the planet is most certainly suffering the consequences.
Image source: @jacarandafm
Video source: @MARIUSBROODRYK
