Look | Shop at Onder-Sabie still closed

The camp shop of Onder-Sabie, a popular rest camp in the south of the Kruger National Park, was left in ruins after a fire broke out there on 21 April this year.

The camp has since set up a temporary shop, and the restaurant, which was also closed due to the fire, is open for guests again.

“The cause of the fire is still being investigated, and SANParks is working fully with the relevant authorities to establish what exactly happened,” Bongile Louw, Onder-Sabie’s hospitality service manager, confirmed to Maroela Media.

“The safety of our guests and staff has always been our highest priority. I want to reassure people that everyone on site was safe. Our team, in close cooperation with emergency services personnel, acted quickly to bring the fire under control.

“Thanks to the quick and coordinated response, we were able to prevent the flames from spreading to the restaurant and reception area, thus protecting the rest of the camp’s infrastructure.”

An emergency service team was called to not only extinguish the fire, but also to disconnect the approximately 15 gas cylinders in the shop and restaurant, which helped prevent the further spread of the fire.

Onder-Sabie’s chief guide was also deployed to warn guests about the fire and to prepare themselves, should they not be able to get the fire under control immediately.

Although Louw did not give a time frame within which the store would be rebuilt, she confirmed that plans have already been put in place to get the store operational again.

“Our focus remains on providing an excellent guest experience, while maintaining the safety and natural beauty that people expect when they visit the park.”