Various camps at the Kruger National Park in Mpumalanga experienced raging fires on the evening of Sunday, October 20.
According to the South African National Parks’ (SANParks) Facebook page, Tamboti and Maroela camp guests were evacuated to Orpen Rest Camp as a safety precaution measure.
“Fortunately the local section Ranger and his team (plus support from other Ranger sections, including and Beyond, SAWC and HHWRS), managed to control the fire around 22:00.
“The fire also reached the Talamati area but the river boundary was of assistance,” said SANParks.
The authority responsible for the management of Kruger National Park said that about 90% of the temporarily evacuated guests were safely escorted back to their respective camps, and the rest opted to camp at Orpen's parking lot for the night.
“We are very grateful to the Teams and support from Greg Bond for working tirelessly until the fire was under control. No damage to property or bodily injuries reported so far. This fire is suspected to be a runaway fire.
“The team is still out on the field and gathering information regarding this fire,” said SANParks.
This is the third fire incident in the region since the start of October. The first fire incident was reported at Skukuza Airport in the Kruger National Park where the thatch roof at the airport caught fire in the afternoon on Sunday, October 6.
The second fire incident took place on the evening of October 14, when guests at Olifants Rest Camp had to be evacuated and relocated to nearby rest camps after a fire broke out at the camp.
The fire incident at Olifants Rest Camp was just one of two fire incidents reported to have occurred at the park that night. The first fire occurred at Satara Rest Camp, where embers from a braai fire landed on the thatch roof of a chalet setting it alight.
SANParks said that the fire was quickly contained before spreading to other structures and that a similar incident occurred at Olifants Rest Camp.
Following the fire at Olifants Camp, SANParks appealed to travellers to be cautious when using braai facilities at the park as the festive and peak travel season approaches with the park expecting an increased number of visitors.