Thieves steal municipal pole in Hillcrest
A concerned resident, Jane Schofield, said she was informed that the theft of poles was not considered a new type of crime as people steal poles to build houses.
THE theft of a ‘NO DUMPING’ pole, that was erected at the Shongweni off ramp, has left a Hillcrest enviro champ disheartened.
“All of our hard work vanished. The pole was cemented in. I do not understand how people can just stop in the middle of a freeway and steal a pole,” said the Move ONE Million – Upper Highway group leader, Jane Schofield.
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The Durban Solid Waste pole and sign were erected by members of the Move ONE Million – Upper Highway group, an organisation that is passionate about making a difference in the community.
What shocked Schofield was when she was informed that the theft of poles was not considered a new type of crime.
“I was told by the municipality that people steal these poles to build houses,” she said.
Schofield said the pole was installed on June 21 and she noticed that it was missing three weeks ago.
“I was shocked as our members dedicated their time to erect the pole and it was such a joyous day for us,” she sighed.
The group recently hosted a clean up on the M13 off-ramp due the large amount of litter. According to Schofield, the sign was an attempt by the group to put a stop to the illegal dumping.
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“DSW was so generous and gave us four long and strong poles and signs that were delivered to my house,” she said.
Schofield said the sign attached to the pole was discarded by the thieves.
“This is government property. It is such a pity that people get away with this. I really think something needs to be done to stop these criminals. Such people, including copper thieves, just move the country backwards. I took the sign with me and I have kept it in my house. We will not back down and we will continue with our venture to keep the area clean,” she said.
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