Newcastle SAPS offer farm safety tips
Encourage all employees to be vigilant about security and to report any crime. Read more here:
Farmers are increasingly vulnerable to crime.
Traditionally, crime increases as the holiday season approaches and Lizzy Arumugam, South African Police Service’s Newcastle corporate communications officer, has drawn up a list of safety tips to help keep farmers safe in the Amajuba District:
Stand by your rights as owner of the farm:
- Visitors on the farm, including strangers, must first obtain your permission to enter the property.
- Your property should be protected in a variety of ways, including fences and signs prohibiting trespassing.
“A security fence should be installed around the homestead, and the gate should be kept locked. A fence, rather than a wall, should be built around the farmhouse to improve visibility,” she said.
- A good watch dog is essential, especially if properly trained.
- Security lights should be installed outside the building and in the yard
- All windows should be burglar proofed.
“A proper alarm system is required. It should ideally be a monitored system that allows for assistance to be requested.”
Personal safety should be a top priority. This can be achieved in the following ways:
- Potential victims can be taught self-defence skills.
- Arriving and departing the farm should be done with care.
“Residents of the farm should also develop safety habits, such as keeping an eye out for strangers and exercising caution when answering the door.”
- Money and valuables should not be kept on the farm in large quantities.
- It is dangerous to be without a communication system other than a land line.
“Be mindful of indicators and other signs that the farm is being watched by potential attackers, such as cigarette butts, footprints, or burnt-out fires,” explained Arumugam.
- Poor relationships with farm workers and other farm residents are hazardous.
“It is critical to maintain positive relationships with farm workers. Include farm workers in being proactive by forming a farm watch system.”
- Encourage all employees to be vigilant about security and to report any crime.
“Farmers should keep copies of employees’ identification documents, as well as photographs and fingerprints; a local police station can also help with this,” said Arumugam.
- To prevent key duplication, keys should be carefully controlled. When not in use, remove the keys from all vehicles.
- Farmers’ daily routines should also vary on a daily basis.
“Make it a habit not to fall asleep immediately after turning off the lights at night. Keep your eyes open for a while and do not sleep in an area where you can be seen from the outside,” she concluded.
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