About 200 South African firefighters are leaving the country to go and assist Canada with its ongoing fire suppression operations.
According to the Department of Forestry and Fisheries, this is the second deployment in response to an urgent request from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) in terms of the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Canada and South Africa.
Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Barbara Creecy said the firefighters will be leaving on Wednesday from Kruger Mpumalanga International Airport.
The deployment comes in response to an urgent request from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre (CIFFC) in terms of the existing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Canada and South Africa that was signed in 2019.
“I would like to extend my best wishes to the team as you embark on your deployment to Canada to help put out the fires raging in Alberta.
“You go to Canada to raise the South Africa flag and share your expertise and camaraderie with colleagues from other Canadian provinces to save lives, homes, businesses and large swathes of vegetation,” said Creecy.
She further said the experience and training of the South African firefighters will help with managing wildfires.
“We are proud of the fact that South Africa is again able to assist Canadian firefighting teams in their battle to bring the wildfires under control. The extensive experience and training of these firefighters will significantly enhance efforts to effectively suppress and manage the wildfires in Alberta,” Creecy added.
The 2023 Canadian deployment teams comprise qualified firefighters, with years of firefighting experience especially in international firefighting which enhances their expertise in tackling complex fire situations, and are trained in Canadian pump operation techniques.
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