Putting your life on the fire line. Wild fire expert Patrick Ryan gives the inside story.

In South Africa, as  in so many other countries, wild fires can be devastating.
Patrick Ryan was on the scene of the fire on Table Mountain National Park on the 18th of April which destroyed parts of the University of Cape Town (UCT), causing the evacuation of thousands of students.

His passion for photographing wild fires and his work as a volunteer fire fighter has culminated in a mission to improve how we manage wild fires in this country.

His company was formed to create a better understanding of the wildfire environment.  It is ever changing  and the systems which aim to prevent and react to wildfire are becoming more complex in the face of increasingly aggressive wild fires.

He believes there are many challenges which need to be solved in South Africa. He and his team work on analysing  all the variables that affect fire management such as weather, topography and vegetation  to find workable solutions.  He also believes that wild fire fighters need to be extremely skilled in order to manage wild fires but this is yet to be recognised and fully appreciated by government and the community. 

He says "I am deeply focused on understanding and addressing the low level of wildfire risk recognition and awareness that prevails. I believe that finding the right communication methods and incentivising via the appropriate channels will bring about the change we are driving for.”

To learn more about Patrick Ryan and what he does go to http://vulcanwildfire.co.za/