One person dead, over 100 livestock lost in Free State veld fires

By Annelie Coleman | 1 October 2024 | 3:33 pm

One person succumbed to the extensive veld fires that recently swept through the Free State districts of Memel and Vrede, resulting in the loss of hundreds of head of livestock, with many more injured.

Bernard Habig, manager of the North Eastern Free State Fire Protection Association, said that the cause of the fires is still under investigation.

The first fires ignited on 26 September 2024 and spread rapidly due to the dry veld conditions and strong winds, reaching speeds of up to 80km/h. “The first fire was detected around 12:30, and by 16:00, nine fires were burning across the Phumelela and Maluti-a-Phofung districts. The following day, we had to deal with several pop-up fires, but the main fires were eventually extinguished,” he said.

Eighty-year-old Marina le Roux tragically succumbed to the flames after being trapped in her farmhouse in the Memel district. Her husband, Koen, was injured as the fire destroyed their home.

Johan Breytenbach, general manager of the Free State Umbrella Fire Protection Association told Farmer’s Weekly that the fire complex that destroyed about 50 000ha covered an area that stretched from the south of Vryheid in KwaZulu-Natal, east of Warden in the Free State as well as Memel and Vrede.

Martin Willemse, chairperson of the Memel Farmers’ Association, expressed heartfelt appreciation on behalf of all the farmers affected by the fires for the support pouring into the area. Free State Agriculture, for instance, made R100 000 available from its disaster fund and also sent two truckloads of fodder.