A fire that broke out on the front face of Table Mountain on Sunday afternoon has been contained. (SANParks - Table Mountain National Park/Facebook)
- A fire that broke out on Table Mountain has been contained.
- Choppers are on standby.
- One person has since been arrested for arson.
A fire that broke out on the front face of Table Mountain on Sunday afternoon has been contained, and, according to the City of Cape Town, law enforcement officials and SA National Parks (SANParks) mountain rangers arrested one person on arson charges.
Ground firefighting crews, as well as aerial resources, including two Huey helicopters, a spotter plane, and a Blackhawk, were dispatched to the scene after the fire broke out.
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For public safety, the Platteklip Gorge trail and Contour path across the front face of Table Mountain were closed until further notice.
SANParks rangers and City of Cape Town law enforcement officials were on the scene for visitor control.
"Visitors were urged to avoid the area and not proceed beyond the upper cable station until further notice," SANParks spokesperson Lauren Howard-Clayton said.
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The blaze was successfully contained on Sunday evening, according to Howard-Clayton.
City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said City teams were no longer on site, but added that they would assess the situation later on Monday.
"There are still hotspots here and there. They will make an assessment later."
Meanwhile, Mayco member for Safety and Security JP Smith said that one of the City's firefighters was injured and airlifted to safety.
At the same time, a joint operation between law enforcement and SANParks mountain rangers led to the arrest of one person for arson.
"The suspect was transported to the CBD police station for further processing. We can confirm that the fire was contained at 19:30 on Sunday evening.
"There are [areas alight] which we cannot access due to the cliffs. Choppers are on standby for Monday morning," said Smith.
Western Cape police have been approached for comment on the arrest, which will be added once received.