Vehicles catch fire at Bethlehem Airshow in Free State

Several vehicles have been burnt at the Bethlehem Airshow in the Free State following a fire that got out of control.

It is suspected that the fire was started by someone who wanted to braai meat.

The show is an annual event aimed at attracting tourists which has not taken place in four years due to COVID-19.

Dihlabeng local municipality mayor Tseki Tseki says some of the vehicles have burnt beyond repair.

@SABCNews_Radio @METROFMSA Terrible disaster at Bethlehem Airshow #BethlehemAirshowDisaster pic.twitter.com/VPT2sPfGaF

— They call me Trinity…🇿🇦🇹🇿🇱🇸🇰🇪 (@Wamphato) September 7, 2024

Local authorities say 10 of the 19 cars damaged by fire at the Airshow are repairable – but the remaining 10 were destroyed.

Dihlabeng local municipality mayor Tseki Tseki says, “We have one unfortunate incident of which we got 19 cars that were gutted but 9 of them are beyond repair, however, we got 10 of them that are still usable. And this fire was started by minors who were at the parking lot of the event and they were waiting to braai their meat based on the preliminary report that we received.”