News

Table Mountain National Park (TMNP) Fire Management team will undertake a prescribed biodiversity burn of approximately 10 hectares below Tafelberg Road between the 2^nd and 4^th of April 2024,  in the area between the prescribed burn undertaken last year in March 2023 and the fire experienced in early December 2023.

TMNP predicts that there will be no disruption to the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway (TMACC) operations and visitors, but we would like to caution cyclists, hikers, and trail runners to remain off the trails below and on the contour path above Tafelberg Road during the burn, as we will have fire vehicles on these roads to reduce potential risk to people.

The TMNP fire management team plans to start burning around 4:00 a.m. between the 2nd and 4th of April 2024, under favourable weather conditions. Fire crews will remain on scene post-fire to ensure mopping-up operations take place until Fire Management deems the area safe.

Although we appreciate that such burning is a source of concern to many Cape Town residents, it must be stated that uncontrolled wildfires that may occur could pose a huge risk to life and property on the urban edge if the removal of dry flammable material by means of a prescribed burn is not carried out to reduce the likelihood of future uncontrolled wildfires.

Fynbos vegetation is both fire-prone and fire-adapted, and the use of fire forms an integral part of the ecological management of the park. TMNP’s Fire Management Department, together with the SANParks Cape Research Centre, has developed a scientific Prescribed Burning Plan for the entire park. This plan determines and prioritizes areas for prescribed burning, taking into consideration veld age, rare and endangered species, alien clearing, etc. (biodiversity as well as protection of properties)

The reasons for conducting prescribed burns in fynbos vegetation are: a) To reduce fire hazards by reducing the unnecessary “fuel” accumulated in the field as a result of Alien Plant Clearing operations b) To rejuvenate the fire-adapted and fire-dependent fynbos vegetation c) To form an essential part of control operations aimed at eliminating invasive alien plants

Residents in the adjoining areas of the park should be assured that Park management will do their best to minimize any possible inconvenience to adjacent households during the preparatory work and burning operations.

When the burn takes place, surrounding residents are advised to please keep their windows shut while burning takes place. Flammable items such as gas canisters should be removed from outside areas, and laundry should be taken off washing lines to prevent odour contamination from the smoke (pets, asthma).