YOUR OBLIGATIONS
FIRE PROTECTION ASSOCIATIONS
The Act provides for Fire Protection
TO PREPARE FIREBREAKS
Associations to be formed and
registered and also lists the minimum
duties required of the FPA in Section
5(1) of the Act. If there is a FPA
The Act places the primary responsibility on the owner for managing
Association in the area where your
and controlling fires on your land but also places a duty on owners to
property is situated, I recommend that
report fires that threaten to spread. The Act recognises that owners can
you join (joining is voluntary and an
only be expected to take reasonable precautionary measures. The
annual fee is payable).
obligation on you applies only where there is a risk of a veldfire
originating on or spreading from or to your land.
Your membership of an FPA has several
advantages, the main two of which, in
Section 12(1) of the Act requires an owner to prepare a firebreak on his
my opinion, are that there is no
or her side of the common boundary with adjoining land (that is your
presumption of negligence in civil
neighbour's land). Sections 12(2) and 12(3) make provision for notice
claims for damage where a fire from the
and co-operation between neighbours when firebreaks are to be burnt.
member's land causes damage or loss
The Act requires your neighbour to burn his or her firebreak on the
to another person and the giving of
same day as agreed or notified, to be present or have an agent present,
advice and assistance to members in
and have sufficient fire fighters available to prevent the spread of the
meeting the statutory requirements.
fire.
The FPA, through its Fire Protection
Owners must also notify the relevant Fire Protection Association ("FPA")
Of icer, must regularly communicate
for the area (if there is one) and may not burn firebreaks if the FPA
the forecast fire danger rating to its
objects or if the fire danger is forecast to be high on the chosen day.
members and during high fire danger
The FPA may also have its own rules for firebreaks in the area.
or periods of active controlled burning,
communication must be sent to
members as often as once a day.
PENALTIES AND OFFENCES
I also checked the penalties and offences (Section 24 and 25 of the Act).
The penalties range from a fine or imprisonment for a period ranging
from 6 months to 2 years and the offences include, for example:-
the lighting, using or maintaining a fire in the open air when the
fire danger rating is high;
failing to take reasonable steps to extinguish a fire or prevent it
from causing damage to neighbouring property
leaving a fire before it is extinguished;
throwing or dropping a burning match which causes a fire to start,
which spreads and causes damage;
smoking when smoking is by notice prohibited;
failing to prepare a firebreak when obliged to do so;
failing to inform neighbours of a threatening fire.
Sources:
National Veld and Forest Fire Act (No. 1 of 1998)
Department of Water Affairs and Forestry: Guide to the Interpretation
and Implementation of the National Veld and Forest Fire Act 1 of 1998.

---