Table mountain fire: Historic buildings destroyed in Cape Town
According to officials, a wildfire on the slopes of Table Mountain has spread to the nearby University of Cape Town campus, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of students.
Table mountain fire: Historic buildings destroyed in Cape Town photo credit: bbc.co.uk
According to officials, a wildfire on the slopes of Table Mountain has spread to the nearby University of Cape Town campus, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of students.
Sunday morning
The blaze spread quickly after breaking out on Sunday morning near a memorial to politician Cecil Rhodes. A restaurant was destroyed. The university’s historic library and other buildings were also affected.
Four helicopters are water bombing the flames.
South African National parks said that firefighters were alerted at 9:00 but the flames spread quickly because of low humidity and dry bush.
They added that the fire created its own wind, further increasing the rate of spread and that it is estimated that firefighters will need at least three days to control the blaze.
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