Durban - The Chatsworth Urban Management division within the eThekwini Municipality is tight-lipped about the installation of surveillance cameras at key intersections in the suburb.
The Daily News has been reliably informed that three new cameras are currently being installed on the Croftdene off-ramp and the Mobeni Heights and Havenside off-ramp close to Higginson Highway. The other cameras installed are at the N2/M1, Havenside Bridge and Link Road. The municipality did not want to confirm this because they were afraid they would be stolen or vandalised.
Municipal spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela said the cameras would be used to monitor crime in these areas.
He said the cameras would be monitored on a 24/7 basis by the Disaster Management and Emergency Control Unit by CCTV personnel from metro police and SAPS.
“The commissioning of the cameras is expected to be completed in this financial year. Challenges experienced included the logistics around the installation as a result of the continuous theft/damage of fibre optic cables and power supply cables.
“Due to the sensitive nature of security operations, the exact date of commissioning cannot be communicated,” Mayisela said.
The cameras have features to watch for stolen vehicles and motor
vehicles that are wanted by the police for
possible involvement in crimes.
The cameras on Higginson Highway are expected to be monitored 24/7, networking with relevant law enforcement bodies and helping to curb crimes such as theft of motor vehicles and hijackings.
Suren Ganapathie, from the Woodhurst Crime Watch and Chatsworth Safety Alert, said he had been advocating for more to be done about crime in the area.
A source said the municipality had taken the Community Policing Forum request seriously after residents protested outside the Chatsworth police station in May 2018 after the death of 9-year-old Sadia Sukhraj, who was killed in a botched hijacking in
Shallcross that year.
Ganapathie hoped the new cameras would help curb the theft of motor vehicles and hijackings.
The recently released national crime statistics for the period March 31, 2018 to April 1, 2019 noted an increase of 34 reported cases of robbery with aggravating circumstances to 433 reported cases in the Chatsworth area. Hijackings had decreased by 26, to 74 reported cases.
Robberies at residential premises increased by 26 reported cases, to 106.
The theft of motor vehicles dropped to 149 cases compared to 354 in 2017/2018.