The City of Joburg took delivery of five new Emergency Management Services (EMS) fire and rescue vehicles and launched its new 107 Joburg emergency number on November 6.
MMC for Public Safety Clr Michael Sun, outgoing mayor Clr Herman Mashaba and the MMC for Group Corporate and Shared Service, Clr Ntombi Khumalo, attended the event.
“Two air trucks, two Level 2 Incident Command Vehicles and one Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) Unit were handed over to the City. The air trucks are used to refill breathing apparatus used by fire fighters. This is vital equipment at the scene of a fire,” said Sun.
He said the two Level Two Incident Command Vehicles are fitted with state-of-the-art technology and surveillance equipment and will be used as a mobile command centre when dealing with emergencies.
The Incident Command Vehicles have connectivity to the Department of Public Safety’s Integrated Intelligent Operation Centre (IIOC), the main nerve centre when dealing with emergencies.
“The Hazmat Unit has specialised equipment to attend to chemical and other hazardous material-related emergencies. This unit is also able to discharge foam in case of a chemical fire.”
“This latest delivery brings the total of new fire vehicles delivered to the City to date to 20. The City is expecting another delivery of six medium pumpers and two industrial pumpers by the end of November,” Sun said.
“The new 107 emergency number will be the only number Joburg residents need to remember and call in a case of emergency in future.
“The 107 number is currently operational and will be routed to the City’s Public Safety Call Centre for all emergencies. The 10177 and 011 375 5911 numbers will still function. It is the department’s plan to gradually phase into the 107 number by the end of January 2020,” said Sun.
The Gauteng Provincial Department of Health will continue using the 112 and 10177 emergency numbers to offer residents in emergencies assistance.
The City of Johannesburg will use 107 for both EMS and JMPD related emergencies.
“This consolidation project will simplify how residents reach the City in case of emergencies.”
