City of Cape Town firefighters, Jermaine Carelse and Renaldo Duncan, ran this year’s Two Oceans half marathon in their full fire gear to drum up support for the Volunteer Wildfire Service (VWS) – a partner in the city’s efforts to combat wildfires.

The public were directed to the VWS digital channels to make donations, and just more than a week later, the organisation reported that more than R180 000 (€8 8 70) had been raised, thanks to the pair’s determination.

“We are amazed and honoured that our friends and colleagues at the City’s Fire and Rescue Service would take on such an endeavour to raise awareness to raise funds for us. We are so grateful to these two amazing men and dedicated firefighters. We rely solely on the donations from the public and corporates to keep our organisation going, so all the funds raised will go towards maintenance and operational costs,” said VWS CEO, Claire Lötter. 

“The goodwill and generosity that this initiative sparked has been incredible. I want to reiterate my sincere thanks to Jermaine and Renaldo for taking this on. You are great ambassadors for the City, and we are incredibly proud of the achievement. To the public who opened their pockets and their hearts to the Volunteer Wildfire Service – thank you. The contributions will no doubt go a long way in helping to keep these brave and selfless volunteer firefighters on the frontlines when we need it the most,” said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith.

It was Carelse and Duncan’s second Two Oceans outing, but this time they decided to raise money for a good cause.