The suburb in the north of Johannesburg is now a safer place to live in following the installation of solar powered CCTV cameras.
Christiaan Diedericks of SOS ProTec Sure is the operations manager of this initiative with three solar powered camera stations having been put up with 10 more being planned for the neighbourhood.
He said there had been a lot of crime in the area which had prompted residents to do something about it. The cameras will be operated by the company 24 hours a day and all residents have to do is call them if they see anything suspicious.
Diedericks said,”Residents will just have to phone us and we will look on the cameras to where they [suspicious vehicles and people] go.” He added that the cameras allowed them to observe a particular property while armed response was on the way to the scene.
In addition to 24-hour surveillance, the security company has assigned two vehicles with armed response officers in the area. This enables the community to have access to a rapid security response as fast as possible. Diedrericks said there was no point in having a surveillance system if there was not a support service in place.
Ward councillor of Jukskei Park Matome Mafokwane said because of the violent environment residents lived in, everybody had the right to ensure their own security and protection and approved of the installation of the cameras.
“If residents can agree to do such a thing and mobilise it and make it happen then I support such initiatives,” he added. He believed that this would help the police in handling crime in the area. The fact that the cameras were solar powered increased the security element that was being introduced to the area as they would stay on even during power outages.
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