Glen An-Hills neighbourhood watch gives back to shack-fire victims
Around 350 informal dwellings were destroyed by a massive fire at the Dakota Informal Settlement last week.
THE recent fire at the Dakota Informal Settlement in Isipingo has prompted an outreach initiative by members of a local neighbourhood watch.
The Glen An-Hills Neighbourhood Watch said they felt compelled to step in following the blaze that destroyed more than 350 informal dwellings last Sunday.
The watch said it also plans to donate items to some of the residents affected by a blaze that destroyed 37 homes at the Malacca Road Informal Settlement in March.
Avi Pillay of the watch said he was struck by the kindness of the north Durban community.
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“We’ve been involved in a few outreach initiatives, including helping with a feeding scheme at a school outside our ward run by a Glen Anil resident, Pastor Nathanael Naicker, and donating items to The Seed Fund run by local resident Arianne Hayes-Hill. When I saw the devastating news on the fire, I immediately posted on our executive committee WhatsApp group, and a plan was put in place on how we could assist. We have really made a concerted effort to see everyone around us as a community, even if they are outside Glen Hills and Glen Anil.
“Within a few hours, Sean Becker, who is part of the outreach portfolio of the watch, offered to collect items from people who could not travel down to Isipingo to drop off at the community centre. We donated clothing, linen and food to the Dakota Informal Settlement. It was great to see how our community rallied together for both causes. We are still collecting items for the communities to assist where we can,” Pillay said.
Fellow neighbourhood watch member Sean Becker said he hopes the donations will make a difference to the victims of the shack fires.
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“We quickly identified there was no mediator between our community who wanted to help and those affected by the devastating fire. We were struck by how quickly the community came together to give back. We know this isn’t a lot, but we hope these donations will have an impact on families who have lost everything.
“We are still collecting to assist where we can. Residents can drive down to the Isipingo community centre, and if they aren’t able to drop it off there, they are welcome to drop it off with us,” Becker said.
If you would like to support the neighbourhood watch’s outreach programme, email outreach@glenanhillsnhw.co.za or contact Sean Becker on 071 612 9277 (WhatsApp preferably).
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