CHAT-BACK

A PAGE FOR EVERYONE

This page is for conversations. Start a dialogue – start an argument – just start communicating! We would like to hear your views, how you think the community should respond to crime, for instance. It’s free and it’s for you.

Here, too, we will post reports of our meetings. Like the meeting held on 3rd December. It’s planned to be a general-purpose page for the community.
Simply email us as normal but head your email CHAT-BACK.

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27th January 2010

Higher visibility from the Mountain Men.

Many of our residents have commented lately on what a reassuring pleasure it is to see the dedicated Mountain Men patrol vehicle back in Kalk Bay and St James. This and the random foot patrols that they carry out is a direct result of the good response we received from residents to our sign-up-with-the-Mountain-Men campaign late last year.

It makes sense to have one committed and pro-active service provider in the area. But it doesn’t stop here. We would like to encourage more householders to follow suit. The more subscribers, the more comprehensive the service. It’s simple economics, really.

Better we pay for a service that keeps criminals away in the first place than pay for one that simply arrives after the event. By then it’s too late. Don Yeowell.

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28th December

NOTEWORTHY: The Mountain Men, as of 18 December, have been back on 24 hour, seven days a week patrol. Subscribers to their services may well have noticed a marked, and welcome, increase in performance. Obviated by a decrease in reaction time! The NW thanks the residents for reacting positively to our drive to increase the number of subscribers to Mountain Men Security; and thanks, too, are due to MM for restoring their service to the community.

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Crime prevention begins at home, writes Barrie Gasson. Here he provides some observations and recommendations for a more secure home. Some of these may seem obvious but it is startling how many people fail to take the simplest of measures.

There is a clear pattern to crime in the area and it must be anticipated for it to be prevented or reduced. Every household can play its part by taking at least the following steps:

1. All houses, including garages, should be fitted with an alarm system that is connected to one of the security companies.

2. The alarm should be activated routinely at night and whenever the house is left vacant.

3. Houses that have been sold and are standing vacant and proudly exhibiting the agent’s SOLD sign are advertising themselves to be hit. Such signs should be removed.

4. Houses being built de novo or undergoing renovation are targets at all stages of the construction process: workers’ equipment; old windows, doors, brass fittings of much better quality than today (handles, catches, hinges etc); new plumbing and electrical fittings; all white goods. Therefore a night-watchman is essential.

5. Parked cars with items visible inside – even a pair of sunglasses – are targets. Theft of wheels can be prevented by replacing one nut on each wheel with one that locks. It can’t be unscrewed without a unique key that only the owner possesses. Talk to Hammy at Mace Motors, Main Road, Tokai.

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Report on Security Meeting held 03/12/09 in the Kalk Bay Community Centre

The Crimewatch Committee (Bert Stafford, Don Yeowell and Denis Evernnett) called a meeting to determine and agree a way forward with measures to limit crime in the Kalk Bay/St James area.

Chairman Bert Stafford opened by outlining what had brought us to request this meeting and gave a brief history of how the Crimewatch initiative was formed and the stage reached currently.

Back in the middle of 2007 the original Committee of 6 members had set up a system of Block Captains. It grew and 12 months later covered about 50% of the St James/KalkBay area with some 28 BCs at it’s peak. Regular monthly meetings were held to pass information and control the operation of the Crimewatch. By August this year the number of BCs attending meetings had dwindled to two! So the monthly meetings were suspended. The Committee, by then, had been reduced to three members but we soldiered on.

Throughout this period Don continued with the CrimeWatch emails and later set up the web site which carried the crime reports. This has proved to be very successful and continues to be a monitor on the incidents of crime in the area. Although even this is suffering from declining support. Some folks are just not bothering to send in reports.
After a peak in crime over the last Christmas holiday, the Committee initiated the car patrol system, based on that used in Hout Bay and other areas.

At a meeting in late February 2009 over 70 volunteers were signed up and we quickly established a 3 x 2 hour shift system which runs Saturday, Sunday and Monday (early) mornings from midnight to 06h00. There was an immediate and notable drop in reported crimes. No surprise there. Received wisdom from security forces is that where there is patrolling criminals go elsewhere. But today we can barely raise enough regular patrollers to fill the schedule. Reserves there are none. If a patroller has to drop out for some reason his shift goes unfilled.

These points were made to an audience of 26 residents. (Grateful thanks to all who attended.) Out of a reliably estimated 750 households in the area, probably some 2 000 souls, 26 people were able to attend. That says something about the attitude to security of the residents of Kalk Bay and St James! We received 12 apologies. Not everybody subscribes to the CrimeWatch newsletter and not all may have seen the item in Tuesday’s People’s Post… but 26 is quite a low turn-out for such serious matters.

The Committee asked for guidance from the floor on the way forward as the Crimewatch operations cannot run without the support of  members of the commuity. We further pointed out that we had initiated negotiations with the various security companies operating in the area and had concluded that the Mountain Men were by far the best operation.

We have previously pushed for more clients to join them in order to generate sufficient funding to improve and expand their operations in our area. Currently they have reduced their 24/7 dedicated patrols for us because of a number of client payment defaulters which cut funding for the service. As a result of some debt recovery plus an increase in clients due to a concentrated sales campaign in the area, the Mountain Men indicated that they would resume the 24/7 service by mid-December.

Anton du Preez of the Mountain Men took the floor and confirmed this. He also indicated that with more clients, they would be able to expand their services further with more men on the mountain observing and more men patrolling on the ground. He confirmed that his company was essentially the only one operating proactively (keeping criminals away) and by making over 200 arrests this year. Other companies made virtually no arrests because they were retroactive (responded only AFTER a crime was committed).

Comments from the floor:

A suggestion was made that video cameras be mounted on Boyes Drive and Main Road to monitor traffic and pedestrian movement. The proposer was already involved with a local installation on her own property. This was countered by another resident who pointed out that in order to get the kind of resolution from the cameras that would be required to make identifications and be able to read number plates, an awful lot of money would be required.

Another proposed that a survey of all the properties in the area be carried out to determine which properties were contracted to which security companies and a drive be started to encourage residents without contracts to join the Mountain Men and for those contracted to other companies to leave their current provider and join the Mountain Men. It was further pointed out that people who were signed up on long term contracts with a service provider found it difficult to break these contracts.

The question of continuing NW patrols was discussed at length with arguments put forward for continuing or ceasing the operation. After a show of hands, a 60/40 (not overwhelming) majority determined that the patrols should continue for the immediate future and at a follow up meeting to be called next February, a further review should take place.

Comment, too, was made on householders responsibilities to look after themselves and their properties. A lax attitude towards security encourages crime and often results in situations which could have been avoided if more care was taken. It falls on the individuals to take necessary precautions to protect themselves in the first instance and the community as a whole.
The committee would endeavour to cover the coming holiday period with as many patrols as possible from the volunteers available. This programme relied on up to date information coming from the volunteers as to their availability and we would circulate a list of volunteers on demand, to the patrollers.

The committee thanked the audience for their attendance and enthusiasm.