Kruger Park beefs up security at Numbi Road after killing of German tourist

Security has been beefed up at Numbi Road and in the Kruger National Park (KNP) in general following the killing of a German tourist in the area a year ago.

SANParks have joined forces with Mdluli Safari Lodge, the Kruger Lowveld Chamber of Business and Tourism, private security companies and police to secure the area and combat crime that threatens the park.

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Mdluli Safari Lodge director Chris Schalkwyk said tourism was very important to South Africa, with Kruger Park as one of the wonders of the world.

“It’s an iconic park, that’s why people come to SA, and that’s why we need to enhance safety and security in the area. We can only keep the international guests coming if we can ensure their safety,” he said.

Safety measures at Kruger’s Numbi Road

Kruger Lowveld Chamber of Business and Tourism’s Linda Grimbeek said Numbi Road was the preferred route for tour operators into the KNP.

“All the obstacles in the road have been removed, except for those that legally have to be there, such as for children to cross the road,” she said.

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“It’s a quiet gate which provides a nice experience for open safari vehicles. We have placed regular patrols on the roads with fixed-term patrols of several vehicles. We have installed a camera at the gate and are adding more cameras on the route and other places in the district.”

Grimbeek said they devised the integrated security plan in response to the increasing crime rate.

“To ensure our tourists’ safety we have come up with a district-wide plan which will include a complete camera network, drone patrol and intelligence network on the ground which will roll out over 12 months,” she said.

Yesterday during a field excursion at Pretoriuskop rest camp, rangers and volunteers found tracks of poachers believed to be only a day old. The group removed 65 snare traps over about 8km in a short time.

Section ranger Rangani Tsanwani warned that rhino poachers were usually heavily armed.

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“We have a serious problem with snaring in the area, with more than nine villages, which is causing more and more problems every day.

“What the poachers usually do is come with 60 snares and plant them as they move through an area,” he said.

Tsanwani said a poacher could catch up to 10 impalas at a time but only take one as he couldn’t carry all of them.

Community involvement

SANParks spokesperson Ike Phaahla said they had offtake programmes in which game meat is given to school feeding schemes and local communities.

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“That way we get them to take ownership of the park because they benefit from what goes on here,” he said.

Tsanwani and his team collect anything from three to 300 snares in a morning, only to find double the number of snares in the area the following day.

“The reason we remove so many snares is that this section is close to the boundary of the park. The last arrest we made, we stopped them in their tracks at 3am. They usually walk in pairs, two or four. Snare poachers are sometimes also fish poachers who come here to fish at night and place snares on their way out,” he said.

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Tsanwani said poachers were targeting impala, kudu and buffalo to sell the meat to communities.

– marizkac@citizen.co.za