The City of Cape Town is celebrating International Firefighters Day by welcoming the public in for tours with the heroes at 11 stations around the city.
Cape Town, South Africa (03 May 2023) – The City of Cape Town’s Fire and Rescue Service will once again welcome young and old to their fire stations on Thursday 4 May, when International Firefighter’s Day will be celebrated. It is your chance to meet the heroes who protect your neighbourhood.
The open day, which is always quite popular, will give residents an opportunity to learn more about the service and what they do.
Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith, will join firefighters at the Goodwood fire station as they showcase some of their daily activities.
‘Our Fire and Rescue Service has proven to not only be indispensable in ensuring the safety and security of all our residents, but show heart and courage in the face of danger. Our firefighters risk their lives to save others despite the challenges of coming under attack at times. This Thursday, join me in meeting and celebrating the firefighters who serve our communities with courage,’ said Alderman Smith.
A Year in Stats
During the past summer season, the Service was augmented by 111 seasonal firefighters who assisted in combatting wildfires and enabling the Service to respond to 7 409 vegetation fires between November 2022 and April 2023.
This does not include the thousands of emergency calls to which the Fire and Rescue Service responds throughout the year. Between 1 May 2022 and 28 April 2023, they responded to 22 506 calls and while the most of these calls are fire-related, 3 613 were motor vehicle accidents, 1 104 incidents of assault and many medical emergencies.
In addition, the fleet has been bulked up and the Service now boasts 72 fire engines, 28 water tankers, 28 skid units, 17 rescue and 10 aerial vehicles.
The fire stations will be open to the public on Thursday, 4 May 2023 from 11:00 to 17:00.
The following fire stations will have specific activities such as stop, drop and roll, vehicle and equipment viewing, CPR demonstration and a tour of the fire station:
- Goodwood
- Atlantis
- Belhar
- Bellville
- Epping
- Lakeside
- Milnerton
- Mitchells Plain
- Ottery
- Roeland Street
- Strand
Are you ready to meet your heroes? You may even bump into recent heroes Jermaine Carelse and Renaldo Duncan who took on the half Two Oceans Marathon for charity while wearing their full kit!
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