A family from Keiskamma Street had a harrowing experience when their house was broken into last Sunday night. The thugs gained entry by cutting the burglar bars and removing blinds in front of the window. According to the ward councillor, Mr Carlos Rebelo, people living in this street complain that criminals are targeting them at night because the street lights are not working. “The residents and I have reported this to the municipality many times, but they are not doing anything about the problem. The municipality’s lack of service is helping the criminals a lot,” says Rebelo. What makes matters worse in Keiskamma Street is that this street lies on the edge of town. The veld in this area borders on Blyvoor and is often frequented by illegal miners, which makes it particularly dangerous. “It is crucial that the street lights here should be working,” says Rebelo. In the meantime, criminals are still stealing even the street lights where Coronation Street borders the same veld. The problem started at the beginning of the lockdown and is just getting worse. At first, the thieves took only two or three lights. By this week, however, more than eight were gone. Besides it being pitch black at night now, one of the light poles right at the corner next to the bridge has also been sawn off at such a height that it would kill a motorist that drives into it. “I have also reported this to the municipality, but they are not doing anything,” says Rebelo. Although the Herald sent questions about the problems to the municipality on Tuesday, no answers were received. This street light pole that was sawn off on the bridge in Coronation Street sticks out at the same height as the driver’s position in a car. If someone should drive into it, they could easily be killed.
