The streets of Hollywood informal settlement, near Casseldale, are pitch black at night and residents see no light at the end of the tunnel.
Tebogo Kroon, a resident, says the whole area has been without lights for almost three years.
“The municipality installed street lights in 2015 but since then they have never worked,” says Kroon.
Kroon says residents fear the crime that has erupted in the area because of the darkness.
“We have people breaking into our homes.
“We can’t even point out the culprits because these people take advantage as soon as it becomes dark.”
The residents’ major concern is that thieves commit crime in surrounding areas and then escape to the settlements.
“We can’t live like this, where police come into our area looking for thieves and then assume we’re all committing crimes.”
Another resident, Sipho Dlamini, says no one feels safe.
“People are scared to go to work or to the shops because they are being targeted, they are robbed getting out of taxis,” says Dlamini.
Dlamini says the street lights from the main road further from the area do not provide enough light for the settlement. Dlamini says people are even targeted when going to the toilets at night.
“We have a lot of things contributing to the crime, but living in darkness plays a major role.”
The metro was approached for comment but failed to respond at the time of going to print.
