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SYNOPSIS
An analysis is presented of the reports submitted voluntarily for 1607 fires which occurred during the four-year period 1 April 1985 to 31 March 1989 on 383 plantations in the Transvaal and Natal and one in the Southern Cape. The analysis is identical to that presented by P.J. le Roux for the previous six-year period and includes data on the extent of fires and the losses because of the fires, both for insured and uninsured plantations, and on causes of fires, the month, day of the week and time of day when fires occurred, the time taken and method employed to extinguish fires, the widths of belts used to stop fires and widths jumped by fires and the reporting of fires by lookout staff. The information is presented for nine regions, allowing comparison between regions.
The summaries of the data presented in table form are compared with the identical data for the previous six-year period as published by Le Roux. The significant differences are identified and discussed. The most striking observation is that the average area burnt per fire in the four-year period up to 31 March 1989 was 6,6 ha, compared with 12,0 ha in the previous six-year period.