Cops rally to make mountain safer

[Chubba]

Cops rally to make mountain safer

June 20 2011 at 12:57pm

By NATASHA PRINCE

 

 

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INLSA

 

Police officers on horseback, officers with dogs, Metro police officers, and law enforcement officers joined the SA National Parks (SANParks) rangers as part of the Department of Community Safety’s plan to make Table Mountain safer.

 

The different groups set out in the rain to patrol parts of the mountain for about three hours yesterday.

 

Most of the officers were not part of the regular teams who guard the mountain every day, but the department said it wanted to “create an awareness” of the resources available in cases of emergency.

 

The added that they would be able to deploy these units when needed.

 

Concerns about mountain safety resurfaced earlier this year after a spate of muggings, and the government, NGOs linked to mountain safety and SANParks decided to join forces to create the Safety Forum.

 

SANParks later announced its plans to deploy 50 armed rangers to fight crime on the mountain.

 

Table Mountain falls within 14 police precincts that surround it, said Cape Town Central police station spokesman Captain Ezra October.

 

He said Cape Town Central covered the area between Green Point and Rhodes Memorial, and that “hotspots” included the blockhouses near the noon gun in Bo-Kaap and the areas between Fresnaye and Green Point.

 

October said police had seen a more than 50 percent decrease in incidents since the integrated approach was taken against the attacks.

 

Yesterday’s “show of force” was aimed at creating awareness, said October.

 

“We can utilise the dogs and the horses, for instance, if there is a person missing on the mountainand for other similar incidents,” he said.

 

 

While police reported no arrests during their “show of force” patrols yesterday, SANParks head of operations Paddy Gordon said their Visitor Safety Security Unit had apprehended a man for “suspicious behaviour”.

 

Gordon said the specialised unit, whose members were full-time employees of SANParks, encountered similar incidents about three times a week.

 

Not everyone was, however, convinced that the show of force would make much difference to reducing crime on the mountain.

 

Mugging victim Craig Irving, who was at the launch yesterday, said he did not feel like there was “an intention to do anything”.

 

On Friday Irving was mugged while jogging above Rhodes Memorial – the second incident in 24 hours on a popular trail in the area and the eighth reported incident of its kind on the mountain this year.

 

Irving was jogging just after 5pm when he was confronted by two knife-wielding men, who made off with his backpack, car keys and cellphone.

 

Community Safety MEC Dan Plato said the show of force was “a good one”, but that citizens needed to play their part and to make sure they did not make themselves vulnerable to attackers.

 

“If we do not stop the spiralling attacks on tourists they will stop coming,” Plato said.

 

natasha.prince@inl.co.za – Cape Argus

[Chubba]

Community Safety MEC Dan Plato said the show of force was “a good one”, but that citizens needed to play their part and to make sure they did not make themselves vulnerable to attackers.

 

By not using the moutnain i suppose - idiot!

[Seeker911]

Chubba you clearly not happy with the "50 armed rangers". At least they have kinda committed to doing something. I'm not aware of anything being done about the same situation up here in Gauteng. It seems some of the hubbers up here are getting together and intend doing something about it themselves. Maybe they will call themselves the "Hubber Rangers" and kick some serious BUTT Chuck Norris style.

[Chubba]

Chubba you clearly not happy with the "50 armed rangers". At least they have kinda committed to doing something. I'm not aware of anything being done about the same situation up here in Gauteng. It seems some of the hubbers up here are getting together and intend doing something about it themselves. Maybe they will call themselves the "Hubber Rangers" and kick some serious BUTT Chuck Norris style.

We ride the mountain fairly often and to date i have not come across one of these so called rangers. We ride around 5.30pm so prime time for attack, as it is dusk.

 

Even with these rangers there have been 3 attacks in the past week!

 

My issue, in particular, with this article was with Dan's highly intelligent remark.... how do i make myself less vunerable to attack? Carry a 45, wear bullet proof gear, not ride the mountain?

Edited June 20, 2011 by Chubba

[covie]

We ride the mountain fairly often and to date i have not come across one of these so called rangers. We ride around 5.30pm so prime time for attack, as it is dusk.

 

Even with these rangers there have been 3 attacks in the past week!

 

My issue, in particular, with this article was with Dan's highly intelligent remark.... how do i make myself less vunerable to attack? Carry a 45, wear bullet proof gear, not ride the mountain?

 

Paint the raleigh logo on your bike?

[Chubba]

Paint the raleigh logo on your bike?

its a morewood, who wants a morewood?

[covie]

its a morewood, who wants a morewood?

 

 

Me let me know your route ill hijack you wif pleasure

[The Drongo]

Seriously, for a change...

 

What are the SANDF doing at the moment?

When I last looked there were no convenient wars on to keep them occupied.

There last major show of force was on the lawns of Parliament.

Very interestingly, until only recently, various NGO's were fighting a lonely war against Rhino poaching. But once a media frenzy started, and exposed the rot, slackness and extent the Gov woke up, and now have a few fatigue clad lads running around the boosh helping the poor ungulates.

 

Methinks they should be the guys deployed to stroll around with big guns. I mean they do it everywhere else in Africa. Although not always for the same reason.

[Spat]

http://www.capetimes.co.za/plato-asks-public-to-help-keep-mountain-safe-1.1085460

[splat]

Community Safety MEC Dan Plato said the show of force was “a good one”, but that citizens needed to play their part and to make sure they did not make themselves vulnerable to attackers.

 

By not using the moutnain i suppose - idiot!

 

What is our part and how do we make sure that we don't make ourselves vulnerable?

 

Dan Plato says: Our message to walkers and cyclists is: don’t walk or cycle alone. Do it in groups and keep the phone numbers of the police and park rangers on you.”

Edited June 20, 2011 by splat

[Chubba]

http://www.capetimes.co.za/plato-asks-public-to-help-keep-mountain-safe-1.1085460

 

Plato asks public to help keep mountain safe

June 20 2011 at 10:57am

 

 

 

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INLSA

 

 

Shanti Aboobaker

 

 

Community Safety MEC Dan Plato has called on the public to help eradicate crime on the city’s mountains.

 

“The police can’t do it alone. Our message to the citizens is they must assist the police in reporting suspicious activity and crime,” he said at yesterday’s Safe Mountain Day organised by his department.

 

“It must be everyone’s role. Too much emphasis is placed on what the SAPS must do.

 

“Our message to walkers and cyclists is: don’t walk or cycle alone. Do it in groups and keep the phone numbers of the police and park rangers on you.”

 

The Safe Mountain Day is aimed at increasing awareness of the safety plan for Table Mountain through the Table Mountain Forum.

 

The forum was established in February after the Cape Times reported 412 crimes over 11 years, with a steep increase in number of attacks in the past three years.

 

The reports led to then community safety MEC Albert Fritz convening the forum.

 

It consists of members of the Community Safety Department, law enforcement agencies, SA National Parks (SANParks) and a number of civil society formations and volunteers, including the Table Mountain Safety Action Group.

 

But Newlands resident Craig Irving was not impressed by the Community Safety Department’s initiative.

 

Irving, a cyclist, was attacked last Thursday above Rhodes Memorial, where two men accosted him.

 

One of the men was wielding a knife, the other a brick.

 

“What concerned me at the time was that SANParks did absolutely nothing and the police arrived an hour later,” he said. “The main question I have is: ‘Who’s accountable?”

 

In April the Cape Times reported that the number of Table Mountain National Park rangers would be doubled immediately from 43.

 

Yesterday Merle Collins, the spokeswoman for the Table Mountain National Park, said that 14 new rangers had been appointed.

 

Three of the five additional dogs that were promised in April have been deployed, bringing the total number of dogs to eight.

 

Frank Waters, who frequents Deer Park in Vredehoek, said he thought armed guards on the mountain were a good idea.

 

He said the park was patrolled by the Devil’s Peak Vredehoek Neighbourhood Watch (DPVNW), a community initiative.

 

“The DPVNW is a voluntary service. We all carry radios and call in if we have a problem,” he said.

 

“My wife walks alone three times a week. She feels safe.”

 

Also in Deer Park, Heidi Marongiu said she never walked alone.

 

“I live in Vredehoek and this trail is beautiful all year round. I’d do this walk more often if the trail was patrolled more often.”

 

JP Smith, the Mayco member for safety and security, said the city did not have the resources to dispatch metro police all over the mountain.

 

“The Cape Flats remains our priority.”

 

He said areas including Gugulethu, Khayelitsha and Manenberg would receive “the maximum of our resources”.

 

“If you work out the ratio of criminal incidents on Table Mountain to the number of criminal incidents in those areas, that’s the ratio at which we should be dispatching metro police resources such as police and our equestrian teams, for example.” – Independent Cadet News Agency

 

shanti.aboobaker@inl.co.za

[Chubba]

What is our part and how do we make sure that we don't make ourselves vulnerable?

 

Dan Plato says: Our message to walkers and cyclists is: don’t walk or cycle alone. Do it in groups and keep the phone numbers of the police and park rangers on you.”

 

Let me rephrase my earlier comment - IDIOT!

[Spat]

Does anyone know where we can get the Rangers numbers from?

 

or which numbers we supposed to call, it looks like thats what Craig Irving tried to do:

 

“What concerned me at the time was that SANParks did absolutely nothing and the police arrived an hour later,” he said. “The main question I have is: ‘Who’s accountable?”

[DJR]

Well, what you need to do is to get a few mean looking mates together, make a posse and go ride on the Mountain together.

 

But.....right now I've finished work early, I can see Rhodes Memorial out of my window, my bike is ready, but the mates can't go! Do I go and ride alone? Yes, I think I will, the weather is great, the chances are so slim I'll run into a mugger! But then I hear my sons talking upstairs and I think of all the wonderful things I want to do with them as they grow up........and I start to waver......The bad guys win!

 

Fu%$#$@@&*&*^^%$#@*ng polititions, to them it's just a PR exercise.

Edited June 20, 2011 by DJR

[covie]

My question is why should private citizens that pay taxes put themselves in harms way to make the mountains safer?

 

I agree we have an entire military force that sit around the whole day and does absolutly jack didley squat, except waste our tax money and eat themselves into oblivion.

 

Deploy military patrols, Have the army do excersizes in the mountains, Let them have training camps. I personally cant think of better recon training than creeping up on criminals when they least expect it.

[Trance Dance]

I almost got mugged the other day. Then the would be mugger dropped his knife and asked, 'are those 29" whells?' I said yes, to which he replied, 'in that case, keep your damn clown bike.'