After an extended vacation, returning to Smithfield has been great fun.
It is hot, hot, hot.
News will be posted shortly.
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Smithfield and Ficksburg Cherry Festival Meet
Lynden Lund at the Ficksburg Cherry Festival
Smithfield artist Lynden Lund had a successful exhibition at the Ficksburg Cherry Festival.
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Smithfield Melodrama Groot Sukses
Nog fotos is te sien op die Smiffie News webwerf. Gebruik die link
More photos are displayed on the Smiffie News website. Use the link
The “Invisible Town” Chaos on N6 Leaves Smithfield in Crisis
By Carmel Rickard
FEAR, anxiety, anger, confusion. These are the feelings of the people of Smithfield now that Rainbow Construction has officially pulled out of town.
The company is dumping its three road-building projects to save itself from bankruptcy. Rainbow will concentrate on its ‘core building division’ in the hope of covering its losses.
Our main street
In the dramatic hours after Smithfield learned Rainbow was pulling out of the road project, a project which has left the town and its economy in a shambles, there was more chaos – some workers operating the stop/go sections of the N6 went on strike because they had not been paid. The traffic department and police were unable to find an alternative way of keeping the stop/go sections operating and so the national road was closed in the interests of safety.
Ou Hotel Kry Nuwe Lewe
Net toe dit gelyk het asof al genade was om die plek te sloop, het twee van Smithfield se entrepreneurs nuwe lewe in die ou hotel geblaas.
Karin en Chris Torode en Ros en Walter Krahn se Rustic Relic in Pres Hofmannstr het skade gelei as gevolg van die ompad om die dorp – oudhede is nie iets wat die plaaslike inwoners gereeld koop nie. Toe die ou hotel weer sonder ’n baas was het Karin en Chris hulle kans gesien.
Vir eers het hulle net die kroeg bedryf, maar hulle het toe gesien dat daar plek is vir die voorraad van die Rustic Relic. Die oudhede pas perfek in die groot ou sit- en eetkamer van die hotel wat nou Rusties Pub and Grill heet.
Die kroeg kry heelwat ondersteuning van plaaslike inwoners maar reisigers begin nou ook om die plek te ontdek. Die kroeg is gewoonlik vanaf 09h00 tot “closing” oop behalwe op ’n Maandag want die week begin ’n bietjie stadiger, sê nou van so 11h00 en Sondae is hulle toe. Daar is ook langsaan ’n kamer waar kinders kan sit of vergaderings gehou kan word.
’n Verskeidenheid drankies word aangebied asook ‘pub grub’. Teen die muur word die menu asook ’n lys drankies met alle pryse duidelik vertoon.
Ouens wat nie alleen by die huis rugby wil kyk nie kan gerus ’n draai maak. Chris beloof om elke wedstryd van die Wêreldbeker te wys asook die Curriebeker se finale wedstryd. Hy beplan ook om ekstra televisiestelle te installeer.
Karin en Chris het nog baie planne soos ’n ‘jukebox’ wat binnekort sy plek gaan inneem. Smiffie wens hulle sterkte toe met hulle onderneming.
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Hooray for Rainbow
After residents on the Brand St side of town looked with envy at the beautifully tarred Voortrekker St that was upgraded to carry the N6 traffic on the detour around town, they were suddenly surprised to find a team of Rainbow Construction workers busily fixing Brand St as well.
Missing Local Woman Safe
A helicopter was brought in to help search for a young woman who went missing in Smithfield recently.
Police with sniffer dogs combed the veld at the base of the mountain outside town for the missing person whose abandoned car was found on the side of the road. It had been seen there the night before but did not arouse suspicion.
It was still there the following morning and police went into action.
During the day additional men and sniffer dogs were brought into the search.
Initial indications were that the woman had not been abducted but attempts to contact her on her cellphone were not successful. Later in the day contact was made and the young woman came down from the mountain. She was unharmed.
It is not known what costs were involved in the use of a helicopter from Bloemfontein and a large police presence which spent hours searching for the missing person. It is understood that no charges are being laid.
The police wish to thank members of the community who alerted them to the fact that the woman was missing. This enabled them to immediately mount the search.
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Smithfield Dam Did NOT Burst
At the time when an OFM Radio broadcast was made by a resident from Smithfield that the Smithfield dam had burst, I was walking along the dam wall!
Many Smithfield residents, and I am sure other OFM listeners, heard the report (and recognised the voice of the person reporting the false news). All, I am sure, were very concerned.
Reaching the end of the dam wall and looking across the over-flow, I was awestruck at the amazing sight and the thunder of the water flowing over and cascading down through the golf course. What was normally a puddle of water through the mostly dried up stream, was now a raging river.
The spectactular flow of water left some crossings impassable, although alternative routes were soon found.
