Holidaymaker praises police for going extra mile
With assistance from her brother, a friend and a reasonable locksmith, Precious' car was towed from Ramsgate beach and was kept at a safe location on the flatbed until it could be offloaded the following day at the locksmith.
A holiday to the South Coast for a Pretoria woman and her daughter almost turned out to be a nightmare of an experience when her car keys got lost in the ocean, however through the assistance of Margate Saps, all was salvaged.
Precious Nonyane and her daughter Claire geared up for their first holiday to the sea and after visiting a few attractions, both were left mesmerised by the raw beauty of the South Coast.
A few days into their stay, both saw it fit to extend their vacation which was set to end on January 3, for an extra three nights. After having explored Shelly and Margate beaches, it was on the January 4 that the mother and daughter visited Ramsgate beach.
Things then took an unexpected turn for the worse. “It was just the two of us so we couldn’t leave our belongings by the shore so we resolved that we’ll leave everything in the car. We lacked a place for the car keys. So I figured that my tights were tight enough, but I underestimated the ocean,” said Precious.
After some jovial bathing, Precious was then hit with a harsh reality, “About 30 minutes into it I remembered that I had the keys on me, but the mighty waters proved me wrong.”
In frantic haste, she sought the assistance of the on-duty lifeguards who dived into the ocean looking for the keys for close to an hour, however, to no avail.
“We contacted the Margate police station as our last resort and they arrived. Sergant Petros Mqokeli and Constable Goodman Xaba were the first police respondents. They offered to take us home. It was around 20:00 at this point, and we arrived back at our accommodation at around 22:00. I knocked on our caretaker’s door, shivering, and they provided us with the spare key,” she said.
The following day, Sergeant Bukhosibakhe Blose and Constable Janet Dlodlo took over Precious’ complaint and offered up their resources, phones and time while spending the whole day calling around in an attempt to raise funds for the locksmith in order to cut a new key.
“Someone asked if I had insurance or not and I told them that God is my insurance. God made it miraculously possible for us to have this car and everything we have.”
With assistance from her brother, a friend and a reasonable locksmith, Precious’ car was towed from Ramsgate beach and was kept at a safe location on the flatbed until it could be offloaded the following day at the locksmith.
“I feel like standing on the highest mountain to proclaim the side of the police service I never knew existed, I never experienced, I didn’t deserve. Margate police personnel serve without complaining. They go further than an extra mile, they go a whole extra 10 miles. They are a special breed and may God show himself faithful in their lives. May He reward them 1000 fold,” Precious said.
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