Once the bustling corridors of commuter transport, the railway lines of Roodepoort are slowly being stripped bare. Thanks to alert residents and security groups, the fight to preserve the vital network is not over.
Two successes in three days have added to the already stellar work done by community security forces since the easing of the state-imposed lockdown regulations. Earlier in the year, power was disconnected to the commuter rail network, leaving the invaluable infrastructure a sitting duck for thieves and vandals.
On 10 October, a resident of a block of flats overlooking the railway noticed three men casually stripping cabling along the line. He contacted ICE Community Policing who strategically converged on the suspects from multiple directions. Two suspects fled but one was apprehended and handed over to authorities.
Two days later, on 12 October, one brave resident of Rail Street took it upon himself to tackle cable theft. The man single-handedly apprehended a suspect before calling for assistance. “Thank you to the ICE Patrollers who assisted with the arrest. Our communities are sick and tired of crime and criminals in our area,” said Luqmaan Rahim, founder of ICE, who also thanked ADT, AfriForum and Apcan for their assistance.
With stations, platforms and tracks fast disappearing, The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) has yet to respond to questions as to what is being done to safeguard its assets. Until then, community security groups stand in vigilant defiance.
