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Fire Service veterans call it a day after more than 30 years of service

Two City Fire & Rescue Service staff members have clocked out for good, with combined service years of more than 60 years. Alderman JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, personally thanked them for their hard work and dedication, at the Roeland Street fire station last week.

Divisional Commander Steve Abrahamse joined the City's Fire & Rescue Service in 1976, stationed in Goodwood. It is fitting that he completed his career at the very same station. As Divisional Commander: Operations District North, he was in charge of Goodwood, Bellville, Brackenfell and Kraaifontein fire stations. After successfully achieving his junior firefighter certificate, he joined the Cape Town fire station in 1977. Abrahamse progressed to the rank of senior fireman and joined the Bellville fire station as a fire officer in 1982. During his career, he also spent some time further afield, working for the Windhoek Fire Department and Potchefstroom as Head of Fire Safety from 1990 to 1995. <figure class="subtopic-fullsize-img"> <img src="https://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Images%202/firemen%20retiring%201.jpeg" class="responsive" alt="" style="width:802px;" /> </figure>Commander Abrahamse returned to Cape Town and joined Milnerton Fire Department as Deputy Chief fire officer until the amalgamation of the various local government authorities into the City of Cape Town. Paul van Zyl joined the City's Fire & Rescue Service (old Cape Town Municipality) in October 1992. Prior to starting at the City, he completed his apprenticeship as a heavy vehicle diesel mechanic. He was assigned to the workshop at the Roeland Street fire station since joining. During his service, Paul not only kept vehicles on the road by doing emergency repairs and preventative maintenance, but also assisted many others, such as restoring and maintaining all the Unimog 4x4 firefighting vehicles assigned to the old Newlands forestry station. Van Zyl is a keen woodworker and manufactured many farewell gifts/shields for staff retiring, trophies for sporting events or items to be showcased throughout the Fire & Rescue Service. He had a keen eye for detail, as was evident in the many scale models he made of firefighting vehicles as a hobby. <figure class="subtopic-fullsize-img"> <img src="https://resource.capetown.gov.za/cityassets/Media%20Images%202/Firemen%20retiring.jpeg" class="responsive" alt="" style="width:802px;" /> </figure>In addition, Van Zyl was actively involved in restoring many of the items on display at the Fire Museum at Roeland Street fire station. He will be retiring after 30 years and seven months of dedicated service. 'The City would like to thank these two staff members for their perseverance and commitment to serving the residents of Cape Town. They also set an example for their counterparts, with what can be achieved through hard work. We wish them well and hope they will enjoy spending time with family and friends, and finding new passions during their respective next chapters,' said Alderman Smith. End

2023-05-30T22:00:00Z

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