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Scores of homes have been destroyed by a raging fire in the canals at St Francis Bay.
St Francis Links CEO Jeff Clause told Algoa FM news that the fire started in a home in the Royal Warf section of the canals at around 5pm.
He said that within 5 minutes, five homes were ‘gone’ and that the flames had jumped from one canal to another.
Clause said that shortly after 8-30pm, the canals were one big glow as a strong south westerly wind fanned the flames towards the sea, destroying everything in their path.
Clause said his personnel from the golf course were trying to assist the local fire department but that there was very little anyone could do. He said one of the current dangers was gas bottles exploding as holiday homes in the canals were engulfed by the flames. Clause said at least 25 homes had been destroyed by the fire and that he had never seen anything like this before.
The NSRI at St Francis Bay has been ferrying people to safety all evening and is being inundated with calls for assistance.
The on-duty officer told AlgoaFM News that there were no casualties to his knowledge.
He said it was impossible to say how many homes, many of them with thatch roofs, had been destroyed but that it could be ‘anywhere between 50 and 100.
