Cape Town — The South African National Parks (SANParks) confirmed that the Table Mountain National Park will remain closed as fires continue to blaze along the slopes.
A wildfire started raging at the picturesque Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens on Saturday, spread to the highest point of Table Mountain, Maclear’s Beacon. The hiking trails leading to Maclear’s Beacon and the Back Table, as well as those between Newlands and Constantia Nek, have been closed, TimesLIVE reported.
“The priority remains the safety of residents, hikers and firefighting personnel, therefore we encourage users to refrain from accessing these areas. SANParks is appealing to the public to please respect the trail closures in order not to endanger anyone or hamper firefighting efforts,” SANParks said.
🔥Skeleton Gorge Fire Update – 30 April 2024 🔥
Due to wind changes, overnight flare-ups have been reported behind Newlands, Fernwood Park & on the slopes of Kirstenbosch, moving towards Orangekloof, as well as towards Maclear ‘s Beacon and the Back Table …#SkeletonGorgeFire pic.twitter.com/y2dkaNA4s2— SANParks TMNP (@TableMountainNP) April 30, 2024
According to EWN, authorities said cooler morning temperatures and the light rain had helped in some parts, however, there were still active fire lines in inaccessible stretches of Table Mountain National Park.
“At this stage, we still advise hikers to remain off the trails, even with the drizzle this morning but we will send staff to assist with the conditions of the trail because we are worried about trees that have come off as a result of the fire and once we’ve done that assessment we can determine whether to open the trails.” SANPArks fire manager, Justin Buchmann, said.
He added that fire crews would assess hotspots during the course of Wednesday.
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Picture: X/@TableMountainNP
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
