John and Carole step up to help
Ms Potter stressed that this database would be confidential and only accessible by Mr Irven and herself.
After a Southport woman lost consciousness and spent some two days lying in the bath, John Irven and Carole Potter have taken it upon themselves to compile a database of vulnerable people living in the community.
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Sheila Nel (82) is lucky to be alive after Mr Irven, chairman of the Southport Sector Policing Forum, had to break into her house to get her help.
Mr Irven and Ms Potter, deputy chairman of the forum, are now urging all vulnerable residents to give them their personal details, strictly for safety reasons.
Vulnerable people can be described as those who live alone, are elderly, are suffering from a chronic illness, are living in an unsafe area or suffer from trauma or a disability.
“A lot of people don’t think they are vulnerable, when they actually are. We don’t want to spread fear but nobody is an island, and response time is so important in a case of emergency,” said Ms Potter.
“We encourage everyone to give us their name, phone number and the contact details of a trusted person who will keep a spare set of keys,” added Mr Irven.
Ms Potter stressed that this database would be confidential and only accessible by Mr Irven and herself.
“With this information we can help you immediately if you are in danger or in trouble. These personal details will only be used in a case of emergency. We can’t emphasise enough how vulnerable people actually are, and we just want to help where we can.
“If you don’t want to speak to us, please give your details to your neighbourhood watch leaders.”
They also pointed out the importance of reporting crime to the police, so that the authorities were kept fully aware of was going on in the area.
Ms Potter said police, security companies and the Southport Community Safety Organisation (SCSO) were working well together, and needed the community’s support.
“Police need the overview intelligence, and can use this information to, for example, patrol problematic neighbourhoods, instead of wasting their resources in areas that don’t need patrolling.”
Wearing his Ugu South Coast Tourism hat, Mr Irven urged everyone associated with the tourism industry to register with the local Community Tourism Organisation, so police could plan their resources for the holiday season.
Lastly, the pair urged the community to report any illegal firework ‘bangs’ let off during the festive season to law enforcement and the police.
Contact Mr Irven at jai.2@telkomsa.net or Ms Potter at elorac.ret@gmail.com or at 082 771 5384.
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