KNYSNA NEWS - While lovely to look at, the release of Chinese lanterns into the air are considered a “disaster” for the National See Rescue Institute (NSRI), because they are often mistaken for distress flares.
Not only that, these lanterns can even be more disastrous to wildlife, because it can cause run-away veld fires as well as set bird nests alight.
It is for these reasons that Cape Town has recently issued a by-law prohibiting the release of Chinese lanterns or any object that may set a fire, endangering residents and the environment. According to the NSRI’S media spokesperson Craig Lambinon they welcome the new legislation.
On an online news page, dated Monday, November 10, Lambinon said that NSRI crew had to respond to seven 'false' reports of red distress flares over the ocean from concerned eyewitnesses, over the past year. Upon each report, the NSRI had to send rescue teams out “to rescue the distressed victims”, only to find out that Chinese lanterns had in fact caused the confusion.
Lambinon explained, “While a Chinese lantern rises up into the air when it is lit, creating an orange light that disappears as soon as the flame is extinguished or the lantern burns out, a distress flare ignites at the top of the arch and then drops.”
While many people argue that they are careful and only launch Chines lanterns when the wind can take it out to sea, everyone knows how fast the wind can change direction and before you know it, the lanterns float towards vegetation and trees and can cause fires in an instant.
On Monday, November 24, deputy mayor of Knysna, Esmé Edge echoed Lambinon's concerns, saying that the release of these lanterns, especially in the forested vegetation of the Garden Route, is dangerous and people should take extra caution.
Chinese lanterns that originate from China and Japan consit of a balsa wood or a thin wire frame, a paper or silk shell and a candle or a burning device in the centre.
When the candle or device is lit, the heat generated sends the lantern skyward where it floats through the sky until the candle burns out and the structure falls to the ground. There are already bans or restrictions on the lanterns in a number of countries because of the hazards they can cause. Worldwide the lanterns have become a popular trend at weddings, funerals and music festivals, with an estimated 200 000 being sold in the UK every year, according to an article published in BBC News Magazine on July 2013.
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