Unsung heroes of Knysna fires

KNYSNA NEWS - While thousands of firefighters, law enforcement entities, and community members were lauded for their heroic acts during the 2017 Knysna fires, few took the time to shine light on the work done by organisations such as Knysna Animal Welfare Society (Kaws).

The society has been taking care of Greater Knysna's animals for the last 54 years, having been founded in 1965.

The organisation has since grown from strength to strength and tackled many a daunting task over the years.

The first days
However, nothing could ever prepare them for what lay in wait on 7 June 2017 when their lives as well as every other Knysna resident's lives as they knew it went up in flames. "We still remember that, and we'll never forget it," said Kaws public relations officer Retha Havenga. "Our manager Annelien Kitley sent our staff home at about 15:00 or 16:00 to go and help their families and animals because the fires began to threaten their homes."

Unbeknown to them, however, was the looming chaos that would soon ensue at Kaws as residents began to pour into Kaws with their animals in the hope that they'd be able to keep them safe. "We had to take the animals that were already with us to George for safekeeping because we didn't know what was to come – we had to prepare for the worst." That didn't mean they were prepared though.

Process and rehabilitation
People bringing their animals in was only the start, as Kaws soon had to start going out into affected areas to search for animals in need of treatment. They started taking in not only domesticated animals, but livestock such as pigs and chickens as well as other animals such as geese and tortoises too. "People just fled their homes, and the majority of them left their animals behind," Havenga said.

But, they made a plan. They adapted half of the dog kennels to facilitate the chickens and geese, while the other half was used for the dogs.

Once the initial chaos had subsided, then came the task of getting the animals back to their rightful owners. This process would take months (up to a year for some) as they attempted to either return all of the hundreds of animals that they had taken in, or get them adopted.

The aftermath
"Those three months immediately after the fires are a blur – everything just went by so fast," said Havenga.

Kaws did receive a lot of help from people countrywide though, and according to Havenga she could recite their banking details in her sleep. "We had so many people calling in to help, but we could only accept their donations because the more people crowded Kaws, the more chaotic it would get," she said.

This meant that even though they received loads of donations, the majority of the groundwork was done by Kaws themselves, and very few have recognised the effort they put into everything. In all, Kaws facilitated and treated hundreds of animals to the point that they began losing count, and only a year later was the final animal that was affected by the fire adopted.

A dog is treated for burn wounds by Goodman Nene at Kaws. Photos: Supplied.