Utrecht residents take on car blaze with garden hose
Utrecht has no fire department and no fire response vehicles. Residents have been forced to watch their personal belongings being burnt to ashes in the past.
The town of Utrecht is a time bomb waiting to explode.
With an approximate population of 32 000, Utrecht has no fire department and no fire response vehicles. Residents have been forced to watch their personal belongings being burnt to ashes in the past, and change seems to be coming, albeit very slowly.
On December 20, residents who wish to remain anonymous, were getting ready for bed at about 10:30 pm. They heard a loud noise which sounded like their kitchen window being broken. Upon investigation, the husband saw that a fire had broken out at a neighbouring house.
They rushed to the house, and found that the homeowner’s vehicle was on fire inside the garage.
“The lady who lives there is pregnant. Can you imagine the stress of seeing your bakkie on fire in your garage, and how dangerous that is for a pregnant woman?” asked the concerned resident. “It was such a shock to see the fire.”
According to the residents, the Newcastle Fire Department was immediately contacted, and to date still hasn’t responded. The police were also contacted and arrived on the scene, only to stand and watch.
“I understand Zulu,’ said the resident. “I heard them asking each other ‘What must we do’. I was getting very angry by this time.”
The resident’s husband, along with another man, then grabbed a garden hose and successfully managed to put out the fire, at great risk to themselves. “What could we do, we couldn’t just stand and watch as their vehicle burnt down?” said the resident.
“I feel this is pathetic. Those people’s home was in real danger of burning down. Who must take responsibility then?” the resident asked.
Jurie van Staden recently moved to Utrecht to set up Pro-Ethnos Services, a private emergency response initiative, and is in the process of getting it up and running.
“We have 38 volunteers who have signed a contract with us. They passed a fitness and literacy evaluation, and were admitted to the program,” said Mr van Staden. ” We have had a meeting with the Utrecht Municipality to find out if they would be interested in such a project. We are now awaiting a meeting with the Amajuba District Municipality, to discuss what equipment and funds can be allocated to Utrecht,” concluded Mr van Staden.
Over the festive season Mr van Staden tended to a few motor vehicle accidents in the area. Training for the new recruits also started, which will continue from January 13.
Residents of Utrecht might soon have a proper service on which they can rely to deal with dangerous situations such as this one. Hopefully, the municipality in question can recognise the need that exists in the area, and equip Mr van Staden with the proper tools to make Utrecht safer for all.
