VIDEO: Team appointed to tackle cable theft in Moreleta Park
Moreleta Park has been experiencing power outages once a week since March due to incidents of cable theft.
A security team has been appointed in a bid to immediately curb cable theft in Moreleta Park in the east of Pretoria.
A decision to this effect was taken at a community meeting on Tuesday evening.
Moreleta Park has been experiencing power outages since March because of cable theft.
The outages usually took place on Tuesdays and lasted close to 20 hours.
Tshwane officials including utility service MMC Darryl Moss, safety MMC Derrick Anniruth Kissoondutha and finance MMC Mare-Lise Fourie attended the meeting.
They briefed frustrated residents about contingency plans by the metro to fight the surge in cable theft.
Moss said the metro was working on among other things, legislation, to have copper declared a precious metal.
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This would force traders to acquire permits for dealing in such metals and carried fines of up to R30 million.
“So, if someone is caught with metal without any permit they can get arrested,” he said.
“We are also looking at technologies that will help improve the safety of cables.”
Resident Sally van Heerden said the metro was not proactive in solving the problem.
Van Heerden said the second theft of this nature should have fired up the metro to prevent a repeat.
“Every time we have been told that it is cable theft in the same area and almost at the same time. Why isn’t anything being done?” she said.
Ward councillor Reyaan Uys said it was not as easy to have people patrol the area where the thefts occurred regularly.
He said the area in the field was not well lit and had long grass which made it an easy target for criminals.
“And the people who do this are not just a bunch of shovel guys, they well informed and smarter than we imagined,” he said.
Uys said the theft of cable formed part of a large syndicate within transport and recycling companies.
Various companies and rapid response teams presented potential solutions available technologies and plans to curb the surge.
The team appointed by the meeting would guard the area while the metro was working on long-term solutions.
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