- A fire-resistant material, Tekrok C, successfully prevented a fire from spreading in the Overcome Heights informal settlement during Women’s Day, despite windy conditions and a 30-minute delay in firefighting response.
- This material, tested and implemented in a pilot project by the City of Cape Town and Mandoval Vermiculite, helped preserve a structure while surrounding homes could have been destroyed.
- Residents have also noticed that the material improves insulation, making homes warmer in winter and cooler in summer.
A fire during windy conditions for residents of Overcome Heights informal settlement usually spells injury and destruction. However, on Women’s Day (Friday 9 August), a fire that began in a fire-resistant structure stopped a blaze in its tracks.
The structure forms part of a pilot project launched last year to curb informal settlement fires. The initiative was introduced by City of Cape Town, in partnership with Mandoval Vermiculite. A total of 300 structures in Overcome Heights informal settlement were sprayed with Tekrok C, a vermiculite fire-resistant substance, to limit the spread of fires.
The product was first tested during a fire simulation at Epping Fire Station in 2021, before the pilot project was rolled out in Overcome Heights last year
Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith said, at the time, during the testing phase of the substance it was noted that structures survived 25% longer.
“We tested this at the Epping Fire Station, on structures that we covered with vermiculite and the structures survive 25% longer than the structures that are not covered.”
Last week, City officials and Mandoval Vermiculite representatives, visited the site of the fire in Overcome Heights.
ALSO READ | Rate of fires ‘staggering’ as City of Cape Town’s fire services battle more than 1000 fires
Ward 45 councillor Mandy Marr says evidence, during the visit, has shown that the vermiculite fire-resistant substance was successful in stopping the fire from spreading.
“The structure remained intact and the fire didn’t spread to the surrounding structures despite the family losing everything.
“The results of the Tekrok C is very exciting,” she said. “Tekrok C, a vermiculite-based fire resistant material, was excellent at containing the fire.”
Remarkable
Marr added that the results were “remarkable”, especially in windy conditions and a 30 minute wait for fire crews to reach the site.
“The substance was excellent at containing the fire especially in this case when it took fire services 30 minutes or more to get there.”
ALSO READ | Kensington fires destroy dozens of informal homes leaving 100 people displaced
The walls of the structure, which were coated in the fire-resistant material, remained intact which stopped the fire from potentially affecting 30 or more structures.
“It’s only the second fire that occurred, where this material was used, and where we can see that it really works.”
Overcome Heights informal settlement community leader Karen Mentoor claimed they have noticed the coated structures also felt warmer during winter and cooler in summer.
said Mentoor.
Commenting on the Women’s Day fire, she said a mother of six lost all her belongings.
“One of our volunteers, a mother of six, lost her shack in the fire,” she said. “The wind was howling like hell and usually during windy conditions the fire would have spread.”
Having lived in Overcome Heights for over 20 years, Mentoor is all too familiar with the destruction of the combination of wind and fire.
“It was the only structure that burned, if the other surrounding houses were not sprayed, it would have all been destroyed,” she said. “This spray works and prevented a disaster on Women’s Day.”
Meanwhile, Samantha Adonie, the principal of Overcome Heights Educare, said she noticed since her facility was sprayed last year it felt warmer during winter.
“Mandoval sprayed the ECD last year and the fire proof coating works really well,” she commented. “I feel that it doesn’t only help in the case of a fire but it also keeps the building warmer during winter, especially if I compare it to last year.”
