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10 October 2025
 
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Institution of Fire Engineers South Africa held 73rd AGM and online conference

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The Institution of Fire Engineers South Africa held its 73rd AGM together with an online conference on 18 and 19 September 2025. In this conference, practitioners and industry leaders from across the globe exchange knowledge, innovations and best practices in fire protection and safety.

IFE South Africa Awards Presentation
On the 18th September 2025 the IFE SA Branch held its Annual General Meeting and online conference. The AGM was conducted from 9:00 to 11:00. The SA Branch President, Mr Given Mgiba who was elected for a further two year term, opened the 73rd Annual General Meeting by welcoming all in attendance. After the AGM the IFE SA office used the ‘Zoom’ platform to welcome new members, acknowledge and recognise the membership upgrades, congratulate the continuous memberships awarded and celebrate the academic achievements of the Branch exam students.

The IFE SA recognises and appreciates the continued support of its members. 27 members were issued with continuous membership certificates. A special mention was made of Peter Davey GIFireE on reaching an incredible milestone of 60 years as a proud member of the Institution of Fire Engineers. His dedication, commitment and passion for the fire engineering profession are truly inspiring. This remarkable achievement reflects his lifelong contribution and unwavering support to the field. The Branch thanked him for his outstanding service and for being a shining example to all members.

A total of eight certificates and awards were given to exam candidates from the October 2024 and March 2025 exam sessions.

Key insights from local and global, Fire Safety Challenges Online Conference
The online conference took place on 18 and 19 September 2025. The focus of this event was on how global collaboration within the fire industry significantly enhances fire prevention efforts. By sharing knowledge, best practices, and resources, such collaboration leads to improved strategies and technologies for fire safety. It also allows for a more co-ordinated and effective response to largescale incidents, ultimately reducing fire-related damage and loss of life. During this conference, the aim was to emphasise how we can learn from both our local and international counterparts to enhance the interoperability and effectiveness of fire safety systems.

An indepth overview of the AGM and online conference will be published in the upcoming edition of Fire and Rescue International magazine.

Photo1: Peter Davey GIFireE receiving his continuous membership certificate for reaching an incredible milestone of 60 years as a proud member of the Institution of Fire Engineers.

Source: Institution of Fire Engineers Southern Africa

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Quote of the week
“The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority.” ~
Ken Blanchard

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DMISA


Cape Town fire crews respond to high-rise fire in CBD
CTCBDFire CTCBDFire
CTCBDFire CTCBDFire

A fire broke out during construction work at a high-rise building situated at 36 Hans Strijdom Avenue in the Cape Town CBD. Jermaine Carelse, spokesperson, City of Cape Town Fire and Rescue Service, said, “The incident occurred on Monday, 29 September 2025 and was reported as a building alight. The fire was inside the ventilation ducting system and firefighters accessed the area by using the carborundum cutter and flooding it with water, an internal hose reel was used. Our response included Roeland Street Fire Station with seven firefighters, one safety officer and the station commander with a fire engine and hydraulic platform and Salt River Fire Station with five firefighters and a fire engine.”

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Vanguard


“She went through hell”: Honouring Wisconsin breast cancer fighters, survivors

Fifteen years ago, Shawn Aunkst was given an old red firefighter’s helmet while working at the Gibbon Volunteer Fire Department in the US. While the helmet was unusable, Aunkst knew it had a greater purpose. He spray-painted over the red with a light pink and covered the rim with hot pink tape. Then the signatures started. One by one, names were written on the helmet of those battling breast cancer, of the victors who were declared cancer-free and of angels who died fighting. Now, Aunkst is working on filling his third helmet with names of those affected by breast cancer.

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PinkHelmet

industrialfire


Multiple shacks on fire at Siblicon Informal Settlement, Tshwane
TshwaneShackFire TshwaneShackFire

A fire broke out at the Siblicon Informal Settlement in Tshwane on Saturday, 11 October 2025. Nana Radebe-Kgiba, deputy chief, Public Information and Liaison Services at the City of Tshwane Emergency Services, said, “The City of Tshwane Emergency Services Department is currently on scene battling flames of multiple shacks on fire at Siblicon Informal Settlement near the Sefako Makgatho Drive in Derdepoort, Tshwane. Upon notification of the shack fire through the Emergency Communication Centre around 13h07 this afternoon, multiple resources were dispatched.”

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DOSETECH


New WHO prehospital emergency care (ambulance) guidance and maternal and newborn health

This webinar, hosted by the Transport and Referral Community of Practice, will give an overview of the prehospital guidance and discuss its potential to help reduce maternal and newborn mortality and stillbirths. Prehospital emergency care – and between hospital care – for critically ill and injured people is a vital part of a functional health system, enabling for system to medical, surgical and obstetric emergencies. Good quality emergency care, especially for women and newborns, has the potential to contribute to saving millions of mothers and newborn lives and preventing stillbirths. However, in many countries, prehospital care and emergency transport lack proper regulation, coordination, trained staff, and equipment, leading to poor emergency care. Join: https://www.lshtm.ac.uk/research/centres/march-centre/transport-and-referral

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WHONewBorn

IgnisFire


Zoo Lake bowls clubhouse gutted by fire, Johannesburg
ZooLakeFire ZooLakeFire

The Zoo Lake Bowls clubhouse in Johannesburg was gutted by a fire that broke out in the early hours of Wednesday, 1 October 2025. Johannesburg Emergency Management Services (EMS) said they responded to a fire incident call at the Zoo Lake clubhouse before 7am on Wednesday. Flames and plumes of smoke could be seen from a distance as emergency services rushed to the scene. Firefighters from Fire Ops SA and the City of Johannesburg Emergency Services were quickly on the scene.

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Ruralmetro


Fighting fires with the power of research
HTXSingapore HTXSingapore
HTXSingapore HTXSingapore

In March 2024, three stalls in a neighbourhood hawker centre went up in smoke and flames after a power-assisted bicycle (PAB) parked in the vicinity suddenly caught fire. In fact, this incident occurred just less than four hours after a personal mobility aid (PMA) device that was charging in a residential flat ignited, engulfing the entire unit in a blaze. Fire incidents in Singapore are on a gradual rise, alongside the growing presence of energy-powered active mobility devices (AMDs) and electric vehicles (EVs). As such, getting to the bottom of fire incidents and uncovering their root causes are essential to prevent recurrences.

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CW Price


Multiple shacks up in smoke, Ekurhuleni
PomonaShacks PomonaShacks

An unknown number of informal settlement dwellers were displaced as scores of their homes burnt down in Pomona Informal Settlement, EP Malan Street in Pomona just outside Kempton Park, City of Ekurhuleni (CoE), on Sunday, 12 October 2025. William Ntladi, district manager media liaison: Ekurhuleni Disaster and Emergency Management Services (DEMS), said, “CoE firefighters from Farrarmere Fire Station as primary responders, received the call around 12h00 noon and swiftly responded to the scene for intervention. On arrival, the entire settlement was at a very high risk of burning as strong winds fuelled the flames, spreading them at a faster rate. Extra resources were activated to the scene from nearby fire stations, including Oliver Tambo Airport Fire and Rescue Service.”

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Survival-Technology


Recoil aerial firefighting tanks help fight major western US fires

Firefighters battling recent large fires across the Western U.S. have received help from new, American-made helicopter firefighting technology. Kentucky’s Recoil Aerospace Inc. (Recoil), designer of what the company said are the world’s most advanced aerial fire suppression systems (AFSS), has seen heavy usage of its Tsunami Internal AFSS 790-gallon tank for the UH-60 Black Hawk series helicopters. From Colorado to California, Recoil-equipped firefighting helicopters are making positive impact on major fires.

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RecoilAerialFF

FRI Latest issue


Frantic rush to reach scores of students missing for days after boarding school collapse in Indonesia
SchoolCollapse SchoolCollapse
SchoolCollapse SchoolCollapse

Indonesian rescue teams were frantically searching for scores of young students buried for two days under rubble in Sidoarjo, East Java, after their Islamic boarding school collapsed on them during afternoon prayers. In one pocket of the mangled concrete of the collapsed century-old Al Khoziny boarding school, authorities located six children alive and were running food, water and oxygen to the trapped group. But in total, at least 91 people remain missing, Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Authority (BPBD) said late Tuesday, 30 September 2025.

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FRI Latest issue


Featured FRI Magazine article: The six principals of rescue foundation by Neville van Rensburg
FRIArticle FRIArticle

This week’s featured Fire and Rescue International magazine article is: The six principals of rescue foundation by Neville van Rensburg, provincial rescue and disaster coordinator, Western Cape Emergency Services, at the time of writing the article (FRI Vol 3 no 8). We will be sharing more technical/research/tactical articles from Fire and Rescue International magazine on a weekly basis with our readers to assist in technology transfer. This will hopefully create an increased awareness, providing you with hands-on advice and guidance. All our magazines are available free of charge in PDF format on our website and online at ISSUU. We also provide all technical articles as a free download in our article archive on our website.

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DMJ Latest issue


Fire stations of the world: Gladstone Airport’s ARFF fire station in Queensland, Australia
FSOW FSOW

Gladstone Airport’s new $9,2 million aviation rescue fire station has been officially opened on 8 December 2014. A continued increase in passengers at Gladstone Airport prompted Airservices Australia to construct a new fire station to ensure capability kept pace with the demands of growth in aviation and to provide an added layer of safety to airport users. A Category 6 airport, Gladstone Airport is located 8km west of the town of Gladstone in Queensland, Australia. The fire station sees the introduction of a new aviation fire service at Gladstone, providing an added layer of safety to all users of the airport.

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DMJ Latest issue


Technology: World’s largest Bell HEMS operator adds Bell 429s to emergency services fleet
Technology Technology

Bell Textron Inc, a Textron Inc. company, has announced that Global Medical Response (GMR) has signed a purchase agreement for seven Bell 429 helicopters, with the option to purchase an additional eight. This expansion reinforces GMR’s position as the world’s largest Bell helicopter operator in the Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) sector.Headquartered in Lewisville, Texas, GMR operates 381 bases across all 50 US states and internationally, providing life-saving care as the largest end-to-end provider of acute out-of-hospital patient care.

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Fitness: Firefighter Workout: Firefighter Fitness

Firefighter Workout: Firefighter Fitness.

Source: Donny Pearson, Firefighter performance coach

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Fitness

Training: Tower ladder operation hand signals

Tower ladder operation hand signals.

Source: Fire Spotlight

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Training

Vintage: Junkyard rescue: Vintage 4×4 army style fire truck

This old 1978 Bedford M Series 4×4 off-road fire truck was sent to scrap metal to be crushed and I saved it. After some repairs, you can see how it will start, will it run and drive as a rescued truck. These fire trucks are rare in Australia (Down Under) because our Army never had these trucks in our military fleet unlike the British Army where these trucks were common.

Source: Bruce In AUS

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Vintage

Inspiration: Quote of the week
Inspiration

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Just for fun LOL
fun

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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in the articles and in any corresponding comments are the opinions of the original authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Fire and Rescue International editorial team or its management.

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