Page 87 - KBHA BULLETIN 5

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Rockfalls

Mountain rock falls, though rare in Kalk Bay, did cause certain problems. One of the most
notorious was that caused by Mr. Arthur Hopkins who ran the Kalk Bay quarry near the waterfall

on Boyes Drive. Apparently he, or his employees, had failed to obey certain municipal safety
instructions for the operation of the quarry (which was leased from the municipality) and in 1901

a large rock, some five foot square and weighing over two tons crashed down from his quarry

nearly wiping out the houses in Belmont Road. The rock finished on the Main Road and
miraculously no-one was injured. Mr. Hopkins was instructed to close his quarry forthwith. The

outcry from residents resulted in the Council forbidding any more quarrying from the section of
mountain north of Clairvaux Road, as this was not the first instance of a rock fall. Mr. William

Delbridge did, however, operate a small quarry in Quarry Road at the Clovelly end of Kalk Bay,

until 1912. Regular inspections and his adherence to the Council by-laws on quarry operations
ensured no rock falls occurred.

Another bad rock fall, not related to quarry operations, occurred in December 1912 when a huge

rock crashed through Miss Gell's home, ‘Firmount’ in Gatesville Road. It nearly killed her and
her servant Mary. The house was completely destroyed and it was a miracle that the two escaped.

The house was later rebuilt and part of the foundations of the new house rest on one of the

boulders which rolled down the mountainside that day.

Plagues

In 1901 Kalk Bay residents, especially the poorer folk, experienced the effect of the outbreak of

Bubonic Plague which spread throughout the Cape Colony. The Municipality ordered 50 drums
of disinfectant which was issued to the poor, free of charge. A Plague Committee was

established, the outcome of which was a recommendation by the Health Inspector, Mr. J. J.
Bolger, that the washing of clothes and linen be removed from Diep River and localised at Kalk

Bay, where better control of cleanliness could be maintained. This recommendation resulted in

the construction of the municipal washhouse (on the site of today’s children's playground in

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