Fire breaks out on mountain slopes above Simondium

Firefighting crews are battling a vegetation fire on the mountain slopes above Simondium in the Cape Winelands, with strong winds raising concerns that the blaze could spread, ***Cape {town} Etc ***reports.

The Cape Winelands District Municipality’s (CWDM) Fire Services began responding to the fire at about 2pm on Friday, 18 September.

The fire is burning above La Plaisir Wine Estate, with the municipality saying a combination of high fuel loads and very strong winds is driving the blaze.

Picture: CWDM firefighter Morne Isaacs / CWDM / Facebook

Two CWDM ground teams from NCC Wildfires, as well as a team from CapeNature, have been deployed to the area.

However, the terrain is currently inaccessible to firefighting vehicles, meaning crews are unable to reach the fire lines with vehicles.

According to CWDM, firefighters are also particularly concerned that the strong winds could cause further spot fires, potentially allowing the blaze to spread into new areas.

Firefighting operations are expected to continue for at least the next 12 hours, unless conditions change.

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**Picture: **CWDM firefighter Morne Isaacs / CWDM / Facebook

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