THE FUSE

When I went out to Franschhoek early last Friday, some two weeks after the devastating run of fires had begun, there was little to be seen of smoke and flame. From small and sluggish billows of smoke I could guess at fires in inaccessible parts of the mountain between Franschhoek and Theewaterskloof, and there was smoke haze blown over from the other side, where the blaze persisted (the blown smoke increased greatly later in the morning, and made my eyes smart). But the mountains ringing the town, no. There was so little left to burn.