Residents will be gathering to pray for the Overstrand, in a special call, to be held on Thursday evening.
Archie Klaas, Mayor, thanked pastors and everyone, saying the decision to pray about the fires, is because since the last big fire in October, “we have had one fire after another.”
The Overstrand Fire and Rescue teams were attending to two active fires at Pearly Beach and Stanford, as of 6pm on Thursday.
After the Code Red was declared, many neighbouring municipalities came to the aid of Overstrand.
Resources on site are from the Overstrand Fire, Rescue and Disaster Management; Law Enforcement, Security Services and Traffic Services; Provincial Traffic, Overstrand Environmental Management; GoFPA; various landowners; Working on Fire ground teams; Kishugu Aviation aerial resources; CapeNature, augmented by FTE teams; the Provincial Disaster Management Centre; Enviro Wildfire Consultancy; NCC and VWS specialised ground teams; Overberg District Municipality; Swartland Municipality; Drakenstein Municipality; Stellenbosch Municipality; Cape Winelands District Municipality; and the City of Cape Town.
The Overstrand Municipality Disaster Management logistics team is expected to remain active until the fires are contained.
Approximately 3 174 hectares were burnt, since Wednesday, in Stanford.
The fire remains out of control and is actively burning, with teams on the ground.
The fire has passed Panthera Africa and is burning in an easterly direction, fanned by high winds.
A flare-up also occurred at the Tesselaarsdal fire along the mountain at Mountain Falls, which started on 20 December 2025. The fire is burning within the perimeter.
A whooping 15 292 hectares burnt at Pearly Beach, up from Wednesday’s 1 600 ha.
The fire remains out of control.
Division D (Baardskeerdersbos side) is burning with high intensity across farmland and mountainous terrain and has spread in the direction of Elim, part of the Agulhas Municipality.
The R43 between Stanford and Gansbaai is open.
Similarly, the R43 Uilkraalsmond to Pearly Beach is also open.
The Municipality said a Stop-and-go traffic will be enforced at Pearly Beach Main Road, Pearly Beach Gravel Road and the R43 between Pearly Beach and Buffeljags.
Mosselbay
Fire crews remain fully on site, following several flare-ups just after 2pm on Thursday, fanned by strong winds.
Vulnerable areas are Aalwyndal, Island View, Vakansieplaas, Num Num, Sonskynvallei, Hartenbos Heuwels and Renosterbos.
Additional resources were also dispatched, such as water sources, including refilling with grey water from the regional wastewater works, additional water tankers, farmers associations from all over the greater Mossel Bay with water resources.
More firefighters have arrived from Oudsthoorn, George and Hessequa Municipality.
Picture: Supplied