National Veld and Forest Fire Act, 1998 (Act No. 101 of 1998)Chapter 5 : Fire Fighting18. Actions to fight fires |
| (1) | Any owner who has reason to believe that a fire on his or her land or the land of an adjoining owner may endanger life, property or the environment, must immediately— |
| (a) | take all reasonable steps to notify— |
| (i) | the fire protection officer or, failing him or her, any member of the executive committee of the fire protection association, if one exists for the area; and |
| (ii) | the owners of adjoining land; and |
| (b) | do everything in his or her power to stop the spread of the fire. |
| (2) | Any person who has reason to believe that a fire on any land may endanger life, property or the environment, may, together with any other person under his or her control, enter that land or land to which the fire can spread in order to prevent that fire from spreading or to extinguish it. |
| (3) | In taking control over the fighting of a fire in terms of section 6(1)(c), any fire protection officer may— |
| (a) | take control from any person who has, until his or her arrival, controlled the fighting of the fire; |
| (b) | order any person who is apparently not younger than 16 years and not older than 60 years to assist him or her. |
| (4) | In the absence of a fire protection officer, a forest officer may— |
| (a) | take over control of the fighting of a fire in or within ten kilometres of any State forest to the exclusion of any other person; and |
| (b) | order any person who is apparently not younger than 16 years and not older than 60 years to assist him or her. |
| (5) | Any person acting in terms of subsection (1), (2), (3) or (4) may, if he or she considers it necessary for the protection of life, property or the environment or for preventing a fire from spreading or for extinguishing it— |
| (a) | enter any land; |
| (b) | destroy trees, grass, crops or other vegetation; |
| (c) | enter or break and enter any premises; |
| (d) | prevent any person from entering any premises; |
| (e) | forcibly remove from the scene any person who is in danger or who obstructs him or her in the performance of his or her duties; and |
| (f) | remove or order to be removed any vehicle or other thing. |
| (6) | Whenever a fire spreads or may spread across a boundary of a fire protection association, the fire protection officer must— |
| (a) | inform the fire protection officer of the area to which the fire spreads or may spread; |
| (b) | take all steps needed to co-ordinate the fire-fighting operation in accordance with the fire management strategy referred to in section 5(1)(a) and (b). |