The Mossel Bay SPCA and animal welfare teams have been walking through smoke, ash and heartbreak, searching for survivors and helping families caught in the path of runaway fires across the Garden Route.
Garden Route, South Africa (09 January 2026) – For the past three days, Mossel Bay SPCA teams have been working non-stop in fire-swept areas, including Num Num, Sonskynvallei, Hartenbos Heuwels and Renosterbos.
The fires have left a path of destruction. Emergency services have battled through, holding the line on multiple fronts. It’s been a terribly frightening few days of uncertainty, loss and hope.
Animal welfare heroes, as always, have been incredible. Organisations like the Animal Welfare Society of South Africa, as well as teams from Garden Route SPCAs, have been on the ground.
Inspectors and volunteers have been walking kilometre after kilometre through thick ash and blackened ground, searching for animals who may have survived the flames.
Teams have watched antelope flee as flames advanced and fences were cut to give them a chance to escape. Live tortoises, some with blackened shells, were pulled from the ashes.
Sadly, many of the animals they find have already succumbed to the fire, but every living creature rescued makes the effort worthwhile.
Inspectors face the heartbreaking responsibility of humane euthanasia when injuries are too severe.
They carry this burden, and still show up everyday, around the clock. Back at the base, dogs, cats, chickens and farm animals from affected areas are being cared for, too.
But the work hasn’t only been about animals.
SPCA teams have helped farmers and pet owners evacuate their homes. They’ve assisted families making impossible decisions under extreme pressure. They’ve helped evacuate an old age home, moving 36 elderly residents away from advancing smoke and fire.
They have shown up for the community, and the community for them.
Since the fires began, helpers have rallied behind them.
People have offered new boots after inspectors’ footwear was destroyed by hours of walking through ash and heat. Others have volunteered their time to help search for injured animals. Donations have been made along with calls asking what more can be done.
“Put your running shoes on, put your safety boots on, and please just walk the areas all around that have been burnt. All we can do for now is look for survivors,” a spokesperson for Mossel Bay SPCA shared.
The team has opened their doors for donations (food, water, clothes, etc) towards displaced community members who have lost their homes in the blaze.
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