Dutch big-air star kitesurfer Walker achieves perfect timing with Red Bull Air Race pilot Czepiela for iconic feat in South Africa Extreme big-air kitesurfer Lasse Walker pulled off a world-first feat off Dolphin Beach in Cape Town on Thursday, January 16 when he completed a stunning jump in the water over the low-altitude plane of masterful Red Bull Air Race pilot Łukasz 'Luke' Czepiela. Dutchman Walker grew up on the coast of the Netherlands, where he looked up to the exploits of local kitesurfing legends Ruben Lenten and Kevin Langeree and realised that his future lay in the sport. Lasse Walker of the Netherlands jumps over a CubCrafters Carbon Cub airplane piloted by Luke Czepiela of Poland on Dolphin Beach in Cape Town, South Africa on January 16, 2025. PHOTO: Sebastian Mark...
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Avian flu outbreak detected among Cape Town’s penguin colony at Boulders
South African environmental authorities have confirmed four new infections and another seven suspected cases in a new outbreak of avian flu at Cape Town's Boulders penguin colony, a popular tourist attraction and an important breeding site, officials said on Friday. City and provincial officials said the strain of highly pathogenic avian influenza was similar to that detected among a range of wild seabirds, including Cape cormorants and common terns, since May last year after a similar outbreak in 2018 killed hundreds of endangered penguins and other birds. African penguins, also known as jackass penguins, are the only species that breed on the continent but their numbers have been falling sharply over the years due to a loss of habitat and declining fish stocks. FILE PHOTO: Enda...
Read MoreThe docking of the Europa passenger liner in Cape Town on Tuesday was meant to be a ribbon-cutting celebration marking the official start of the cruise ship season in South Africa's top tourist hub, the first since the COVID-19 pandemic hit. But international travel curbs on southern Africa, where the new Omicron coronavirus variant was first identified, have blown expectations of a bumper tourist season out of the water. Gulls are seen as the Europa passenger liner arrives to South African waters, as the new coronavirus variant Omicron spreads, in Cape Town, South Africa, November 30, 2021. REUTERS/Shelley Christians The multi-storey, white luxury liner is the first to dock at Cape Town since South Africa imposed a total ban on all cruise ships entering local ports in March 2020...
Read MoreSouth African firefighters contained a wildfire along Cape Town’s Table Mountain on Monday more than 24 hours after it began, damaging historical sites and forcing people to evacuate their homes and schools to close. Winds of up to 45 kilometres per hour put water-bombing helicopters out of action and more than 250 firefighters were tackling fast-spreading flare-ups from the ground only. Flames are seen close to the city fanned by strong winds after a bushfire broke out on the slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town, South Africa, April 19, 2021. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings Officials believe the blaze may have been started deliberately and a suspect was detained on Sunday evening. They also said it was one of the most damaging cultural heritage fires ever. "With regards to the damage...
Read MoreWith borders closed, South Africa pins hopes on cash-strapped local tourists
Lisa Krohn’s Ashanti Lodge in Cape Town - normally abuzz with backpackers from around the world - today sits largely empty, a sign of how the pandemic has crushed South Africa’s tourist industry. “This place is like a morgue,” she said, contemplating the Victorian-era building’s deserted foyer. Following a five-month lockdown, South Africa is easing domestic travel restrictions, allowing hotels to reopen. With international borders still closed, the government is pinning its hopes on domestic tourism, echoing a strategy being tried from Vietnam to New Zealand with mixed results. A shopkeeper awaits visitors at the Table Mountain cableway station, during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Cape Town, South Africa, , August 22, 2020. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings South Afric...
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