Salt Rock’s neighbourhood watch says ‘let there be light’

After months of fruitless lobbying the municipality to fix streetlights in Salt Rock, the neighbourhood watch has taken matters into its own hands.

Over the course of this week, 26 new solar powered streetlights will be installed throughout Salt Rock in crucial areas – paid for by Salt Rock Neighbourhood Watch (SRNW) members.

“We have identified the areas which are most in need of the lights and have spread out the installations accordingly,” said SRNW chairperson Nathalie Struwe.

The new lights take the number of lights installed to 33, although one has since been stolen so 32 are operational.

The SRNW has undertaken a significant project to number all of the streetlights in the area and have been able to track outages through the community as a result.

“Of the 666 streetlights in our area, 218 are operational, so these solar powered lights are very necessary as holidaymakers start to arrive,” she said.

Between July and August, 71 lights were fixed, but the number has been trending downwards since then as maintenance has been lacking, said Struwe.

The solar powered lights are being installed by Sean Masters and his team at ICU Technology. Masters is a member of the SRNW, and also helps with monitoring once the lights have been installed.

The lights run automatically off a sensor and are mounted on galvanised brackets to avoid rust in the sea air. The LED lights produce 120 watts of power and could play a vital role in safety for the area.

“We are seeing things we never expected in our area, and we have to be able to get accurate camera footage to track down number plates and other identifying features,” said Struwe.

The lights have cost the SRNW R39 000 including installation fees, paid from members’ subscriptions.