After 26 years in service, Knysna's fire chief Dries Pretorius is retiring.
KNYSNA NEWS - It’s not every day that a Weber braai and a Jacuzzi play a significant role in protecting a timber house from a raging veld fire. But that’s exactly what happened some years ago when Knysna Fire chief, Dries Pretorius found himself on the deck of a home surrounded by fire.
“When securing properties, the fire trucks take some time to roll up equipment, so I usually drive ahead in my bakkie, from house to house, to clear the way and prepare for their arrival. That time, however, the fire was already lapping at the deck of the house and there wasn’t a tap in sight! When I saw the Weber, I grabbed the lid and started scooping water from the Jacuzzi, which managed to keep the fire at bay until the fire engines arrived. At the time it was backbreaking work under hectic circumstances, but it was very funny in retrospect,” he laughs.
After 26 years of service to the Knysna community, Dries is taking early retirement at age 60 to pursue another passion: big game. He and wife Jenny leave for Vredefort in the Free State where he will be co-managing a big game breeding farm with a long-time friend.
The imposing figure of Pretorius has been core to the personality of the Knysna Fire Department, which has through the years consistently earned praise from the public, government and the private sector for excellent service and great attitude. His distinctive moustache and piercing blue eyes have been a reassuring presence in some of the region’s most serious natural disasters including numerous plantation fires, destructive wind storms and floods.
He was the drive behind the establishment of Knysna’s first proper fire station and boasts a perfect record of never losing a staff member to a fire, never having any fireman seriously injured on his beat, and never losing a home to a veldfire.
His team has rescued countless cats, birds and other beloved pets from trees, roofs, gutters and other uncomfortable places. They catch snakes, cut fallen trees, attend to traffic accidents and riots and more.
Oh, and of course, they extinguish fires.
“The best thing about being a fireman is the unpredictability; you just never have two days that are the same. The worst is dealing with dead bodies, generally in circumstances such as house fires and vehicle accidents. The saddest moment in my career was the Rheenendal bus tragedy in which 14 children and the bus driver died in 2011 – the memory will stay with me always.”
Born and raised in Carletonville on the West Rand, Pretorius is a qualified diesel mechanic but has been in emergency services most of his life. After serving as fireman in Roodepoort and as traffic officer in Carletonville, he joined the Knysna Municipality in 1987 as a Protection Services officer.
“At the time the municipality stored its fire engines in two different places, relatively far apart from each other, which could cause much confusion in a time when there were no cellphones and little communication resources. I was the only qualified fireman, the others were traffic officers and school kids whom I had trained to assist in case of fire.”
When the municipality built new storage facilities, Pretorius saw the opportunity to turn the old stores in Waterfront Drive into a dedicated fire station. Through the years he has developed the department to the smooth-running facility it is today. The municipality now has three stations, 29 permanent staff and several standby fire fighters.
“I am very grateful to the town clerks, municipal managers and senior staff who have through the years trusted me and allowed me the freedom to do my job the way I saw fit. This kind of work requires a lot of quick decision-making under pressure and I have been privileged to work with bosses and colleagues who understood that.”
Pretorius has always had a knack to spot talent. Under his leadership, hundreds of emergency personnel have been identified, trained and mentored. “There are certain traits that emergency staff must have and applicants go through strenuous testing to see if they have the physical and mental requirements for the job. The real test remains a real emergency situation, and not everyone makes it. Good firemen have adventurous spirits and guts. Lots of guts.”
He thanks the many people who have worked with him in the department: “You are exceptional people who will continue to protect the lives and property of people in a most excellent way.
“I also thank the public of the greater Knysna for their ongoing support throughout my career. I truly believe that people in Knysna want things to work for the better of all, and they have certainly made it a joy to live and work here.”
Knysna municipal manager Lauren Waring said Pretorius played a significant role in the development of the municipality’s emergency services and thanked him for his committed service to the town and its people. “Few people had contributed so extensively to our community. The 26 years he has invested in our town are recognised and appreciated.
“On a more personal level, Dries has worked with me for several years and I will dearly miss his strong presence and leadership, as well as his extraordinary cool and savvy under pressure. The municipality is losing a true gem. I wish him well in his new endeavour and know he will be of great value to his new colleagues.”
- Knysna/Plett Herald
