Nature showed her claws again this weekend in the Western Cape, when Somerset West’s Straightway Head Hotel was ravaged by a veld fire along with 15 other houses on Saturday. Built in 1939, The Straightway Head was a well-known luxury establishment. Many of your grandparents would have been familiar with it, even if you weren’t.

The fire apparently started as a line of flames on the Helderberg Nature Reserve, suggesting a planned burn. With strong winds blowing at up to 60km/h, the veld fire got burned of control on Saturday morning and jumped from an adjacent building with a thatch roof on to the hotel itself.

The fire engulfed the hotel complex so quickly that fire extinguishers could not be used to any great effect. Only two charred buildings are still standing. An estimated R20-million worth of damage was caused. Fifteen other houses in the Somerset West community were also destroyed by the fire.

The loss of personal property by staff who resided on the premises, as well as other former home owners is particularly devastating.

[Source: News24]