Winter period usually see alot of fire ignited in the bushes for unknown reasons and people also apply different methods to get warm in their homes.
Some of these methods can be dangerous, such as inhaling toxic fumes or a house catching fire and ultimately burning.
On Sunday morning a 10 year old boy burnt inside a shack in Marapong Ext3(Manamela Park), after he was reportedly left alone and locked in a shack.
According to Lephalale police the deceased burnt beyond recognition.
Lephalale police spokesperson Warrant Officer Frans Mokoena appealed with parents and guardians to not leave their children unattended as that amounts to negligence.
There has also recently been an increasing number of veld fires across Lephalale and in many cases livelihoods, plants and properties are destroyed.
Emergency services have been attending a number of fire incidents in the bushes recently, near Kerk street in town and one of the biggest being between Matimba Power Station and Marapong location on 26 June 2023.
It is not known who starts these fires and whether they are authorised to do that or not.
Working On Fire in Limpopo province said they are aware of the fire incidents.
They say these fires are a concern to the environment.
Solly Matlhare, who is the Community Fire Awareness Officer in Limpopo said research proved that over 90% of fire incidents are caused by people.
He said in most cases these are people who lack knowledge about the damage their actions do to the environment.
“Some of these people start fires while hunting, collecting woods and others think they are getting rid of the old grass and creating space for new grass, without realising that what they are doing is wrong.
No one is allowed to start fire without a permit.
Fires destroy many things and also affect the ozone layer, where we will see temperatures rise and we end up experiencing high evaporation rate which results in dry land”, said Matlhare.
He said that when it is necessary to start a fire by an official person or organisation, they apply ‘prescribed burn’, which is also known as hazard reduction burning for purposes of forest management.
Matlhare said, “In this case when the community feels a particular area needs attention because of long grass, they can inform the municipality who will inform us (WOF) and together with our stakeholders that include fire associations, experts will do some assessments to ensure the right tools are in place before fire is formally started.”
Last year parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Environment, Forestry and Fisheries held public hearings in Limpopo on the National Veld and Forest Fire Amendment Bill, to legislate veld fire management and prevention.
The Bill seeks to amend the National Veld and Forest Fire Act, 1998, to amend and insert certain definitions, to provide for the facilitation of the formation of fire protection associations by a municipality or a traditional council, to compile a municipality, state-owned enterprise, public entity or other organ of state which owns land yo join the fire protection associations, to extend the powers of entry, search, seizure and arrest to peace officers and traditional leaders, to amend the title of the Act to the National Veld fire Act, and to provide for matter connected therewith.