Towards the end of September, wildfires ravaged approximately 145 000 ha of grazing in Kimberley and Hopetown in the Northern Cape Province. This was not an isolated event. The total figure of grazing destroyed by veld fires during August – September 2021 totaled over half a million hectares. The saddest part was that these fires were not started by natural causes such as lightning and could have been avoided.

Damage included loss of grazing and infrastructure, e.g., the wires and poles of fences, buildings, water pumps, solar panels, etc. Animals were also killed and injured in the fires. This includes livestock and wildlife. Afrivet stepped up to assist farmers and donated more than a R100 000 worth of medicine to the 10 veterinary practices who provided their professional services at no cost and with the assistance of Seabourne Express, Afrivet’s new exclusive national distributer, couriered the products to the veterinarians in the Northern Cape overnight for a Saturday delivery at no cost.

Hardus Mans, from the farm Driekoppies Kimberley, provided a personal overview of the actual events and aftermath of the wide-ranging veld fires that he experienced on his own, and neighbouring farms.

The fires had an enormous impact on our lives, and we first assisted at the farms where they originated.  During these times, all other work grinds to a halt as all else becomes insignificant.  Veld fires consume grass, trees, animals, insects, time, and joy.  While the fire is a few farms away, your stress level escalates, then as reality draws closer, we frantically try to coordinate this monster that is out of control and self-preservation must become your purpose.

During the height of these veld fires, the threat to humans, animals, vehicles, farmhouses, and infrastructure is massive.  All vehicles leave this fight with damage.  Tyres get sliced, paint get scratched, mud flaps get torn off, shocks take a beating and interiors are infiltrated with the smell of burned grass.

For the second time in my 56-year life, I faced death.  Both times were due to veld fires.  The speed at which a situation changes, is so fast that even the most experienced people can become trapped.  We were driving towards an area on the neighbouring farm where there was more grass and less swarthaak, vaalbos and rocks, which make manoeuvrability a massive problem.  The road was sandy, and the fire was about 800m away.  I stopped to communicate with the vehicle behind me, and as I did, I became aware of the crackling sound of flames that were consuming everything in their way.  Wild animals appeared as they fled the flames, indicating that we should turn around and flee!  

One must stay calm as the wrong vehicle manoeuvre on such a sandy path will result in getting stuck, thus being unable to save yourself and the fire fighter on the back of your bakkie.  Driving at about 60km/h, above the safe speed for that road, with 600 litres of water at the back and a fire fighter machine and 600 litres of water at the back is frightening. My son, Konrad saw an impala lamb that he wanted to rescue but we couldn’t stop due to risk being consumed by the raging inferno.

On the farm Driekoppies, we managed to get all sheep and boergoats into the kraal at the house.  Most horses could be brought in as well.  I have no idea how all our cattle survived as the camp that they were in, was completely burned.  Our most dense bush camp, where my personal pride of 34 nyalas were kept, was raging out of control.  The vaalbos that has always acted as their protector against cold winds, now became towering flames that ignited all the camp’s grass, turning these gentle and soft natured animals into a frantic state where they would run in fear into burning areas without knowing what lies ahead.  The most traumatic part is that animals that were not only burned to death by the flames, were burned by the intense heat of the ground. Some run into fences, breaking necks and then burn as the fire moves over them.  Some of my nyalas died days or a month later without having burn wounds indicating the enormous stress that they experienced. I lost 29 nyalas! 

Afrivet provided us with the much-appreciated support in the form of me being able to reach out to a local Vet and ask for “fall out” darts for animals for pain relief, infection, and inflammation.  When you must buy feeding troughs, replace damaged fence poles, melted water tanks, and hire trailers for feed, the opportunity to not feel worried about adding a Vet bill is an overwhelming relief.  

We were fortunate to receive a product from Afrivet called Electroguard, that we could add to the drinking troughs, that contain much needed electrolytes, to combat stress and speed healing.  I know that my animals who were the most exhausted and stressed found some salvation and benefit from this.  Thank you to Afrivet for this product, it was a lifesaver!

When a veld fire is so widespread, destroying all vegetation in its wake, the need for feeding becomes instant.  As we are traditionally not a crop producing area, many farmers don’t have feed or infrastructure to store feed and all the animals are hungry immediately after the fires are controlled.

Transportation of feed is paramount, care must be taken that all animals in a camp, receive adequate feed without the larger ones dominating the feed area.  We experienced the challenge to get impala and springbuck to eat in the same camp where the cattle are fed.  Water pipes that are exposed are burnt, affecting the water supply to the troughs.

As a nature lover, I took special notice of other wild animals that we often see and were horrified to note the number of tortoises that were burnt and/or suffered due to not being able to access cattle and wildlife feed that we provided.  When there is no vegetation, this affects a variety of animals, including scorched birds’ nests, springhares, warthogs and even the jackal species. Reptile like snakes and lizards experienced the brunt of this fire. One must bear in mind that they play a significant role in the ecological system, and they too are a food source to others.  

I managed to hide cat and game food pellets under a mesh so that the “meerkatte” could come out of their burrows and get food. I realised that even birds had to relocate due to there being no food source in the area. On Driekoppies we took feed bins and tied them to our tree that has a family bird nest.  I gave daily feeds of crushed maize and saw them enjoy this offering.  We have one large sociable weaver nest that has been there for more than 40 years.  I still wonder how this big tree survived.

Nature does find a way to restore itself, over time. Our fire breaks along the fences are effective but unfortunately, it is a reality that farmers themselves are hardly ever responsible for veld fires and we never find the real reason or culprit for starting these fires.  There are many smaller farms too and centralised, robust fire fighting vehicles would be beneficial to navigate the various access roads and nozzle much more water at longer range.  When there are bushes burning, the heat and smoke makes it impossible for the smaller bakkie’s to stop it.  A better equipped engine can do much more, provided it can be fed with a water car and easily manoeuvre in the rough terrain. 

This vehicle can be equipped to operate in veld conditions and direct the water spray from about 30 m, drive through bushes and frequently fill up from a large tanker that can also operates in veld terrain.  The relief and financial impact would out-way the cost of ten million for two fighters and a water carrier, it could stop the fire in the first day, bringing massive savings to all. 

As our small community pulls together in these devastating times, the compassion of other farmers and people who don’t even farm but have firefighting equipment is immense. Strangers bring bottled water, biltong, eye drops, food, fuel and lastly feed and meds.  The generosity of these people and companies like Afrivet, can’t be measured and we were fortunate that some farmers and businesses with storage and load facilities assisted us with the storage and loading of donated feed. 

And then, not long after the devastation, our area was blessed with an abundance of rain.  Birds sing, animals become healthy again, the scorched land heals and becomes green again. Much has been replaced, yet the aftermath of what happened is forever entrenched in our minds and the trauma is never lost to the animals that were affected.  Life continues, and we remain committed to the farming community, and we are hopeful that humans become more aware of the destruction that these fires cause.  We plead for you to look after our land, we provide you with food and resources.

Source: Afrivet