Tourist Attraction

Late yesterday afternoon I noticed that a few of the scudding-by clouds were off-colour, a bit brown. A sure indication of Fire nearby. By early evening, there was a column of smoke rising over the olive-orchard-decked hill, and a tiny spotter plane doing circles above it.

By 7:30 I decided it was time to get in the car and go see what was happening. That was about the time that a low-flying helicopter flew over the house, trailing an overflowing bucket of water from the nearby farm dam.

Sure enough, the brush-covered hill in the middle of our mountain arena was on fire, and the flames were spreading toward the "rich" houses perched on the hillside. We found a good viewing spot and watched 2 helicopters dump water, the spotter plane still circling. Lights of fire trucks and police flashed red and blue far below. As the sky darkened, the flames could be seen shooting high into the night sky as pine trees exploded into fire.

We weren't the only onlookers. Various vehicles stopped off near us to watch a few minutes, then left. We were devoted observers though. We stayed until we couldn't take the cold anymore and the last of the sky turned black.

I pity the little creatures trapped in the blaze - tortoises, baby birds, insects. There's nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. And yet fire is necessary in this particular biosphere. It brings new life for proteas, certain trees and fynbos plants.

A few years ago, the entire ring of the Hottentots Holland mountains was aflame. It attracted almost as many viewers in their cars as the nationally-famous Christmas lights in the main road! Cars from near and far converged in the night to watch the mountains glow red.

The mountain beneath which the college dwells is part of the chain, and was one of the victims - the flames came up the back of the mountain where the slope is not so steep, and by midnight the crest of the cliffs was outlined in massive bursts of flames, all along the ridge.

It's amazing how fires attract people. We have this fascination with things going up in flame, especially if they're doing so in spectacular ways. Perhaps it's a throw-back to our Neanderthal days, this fascination with the dancing heat and colour. Whatever the case, there's nothing quite as enthralling as fire and flame against the night sky.

::update::
The fire rages on. The wind has changed direction and increased in velocity - the helicopters are back, water-bombing as quickly as they can. It seems many of the houses are in danger. A long day ahead for fire-fighters!