NATIONAL NEWS - Pietermaritzburg residents are concerned about a spike in crime during load shedding and electricity outages.
This comes after multiple reports that people have lost their garden tools, copper pipes, water meters and other metal items on their properties during load shedding or electricity outages with criminals using darkness to their advantage.
In the northern areas, residents said in the past months, many households had lost water meters and copper pipes.They said they would only discover the theft when the electricity came back on.
Ward 31 councillor, Rooksana Ahmed, said they’ve had several meetings in the areas most affected by crime. She added local security companies have been helpful in curbing crime.
She said the response from security companies was generally quick and they have a crime WhatsApp group that has been helping residents report crime so others are alerted to what’s happening in the area.
These crime operators look at the load shedding schedules and plan. We have been fortunate in the last few months having had no load shedding, but we have continual electricity outages which also has an effect
In Mpophomeni, residents have also been facing similar issues, including hearing gunshots almost every night.
Ward 10 councillor Sthembiso Msibi said they had also heard of numerous cases where residents would wake up to find that their furniture had been stolen overnight.
“We have started a street forum where residents can call for help whenever they are under attack. They will blow a whistle so that other residents can be alert and be able to catch these criminals. Since the formation of this forum, we have seen some improvements,” said Msibi.
He added they’ve had a challenge with break-ins and vandalism at Mpophomeni High School. Currently, the school has no computers and part of the fence had been stolen, he said. “The forum managed to catch one of the guys that had broken into the school while the others managed to run away.
“Our police station doesn’t have enough resources and covers a huge area. We must guard ourselves as residents but also ensure we don’t take the law into our hands but always involve the police to avoid situations where we end up being arrested,” said Msibi.
Pietermaritzburg police spokesperson Sergeant Sifiso Gwala said criminals use any opportunity they can find to commit crimes. He advised residents to try and upgrade their security to stay protected during load shedding.
Those with gate motors, when they know when there will be load shedding can turn their gates to manual and ensure it’s closed. People should also avoid walking in dark and unsafe areas during the outages.
“If you know you won’t be at your house during load shedding, inform neighbours to be on the lookout for any suspicious things at your house. “Also try to have someone in the house to light something, even if its candles or have rechargeable LED lights,” said Gwala.
