Safety – Page 2 – Pretoria.ws

Kleinfontein an Afrikaner settlement near Pretoria

Pretoria - The petrol station attendant warns me I am going to get killed in Kleinfontein. "Are you sure you want to go there?" he asks, looking concerned, after I stop to ask him for directions. According to my GPS, I am five minutes away from the settlement, an Afrikaner cultural community near Bronkhorstspruit. "Yoh my man, the white people are going to kill you there. You are not the right skin colour. They will stop you at the gate and won't even let you in." I tell him I am going to see for myself. As I approach the entrance, I am scared. Large white letters, "Ons God Ons Volk Ons Eie" (Our God Our People Our Own) are affixed to the grey wall next to the boom gate. What if the petrol attendant was right? Tense wait A skinny, mustachioed man wearing camouflage trousers, black boots and a khaki cap, and holding a clipboard and a pen, approaches me after I stop at the boom. He asks me in Afrikaans who I'm visiting. I identify myself and tell him I …

Neighbourhood watch makes Garsfontein safer – Get involved in your neigbhourhood

If people do not get involved, Garscom can’t be sustainable. Pretoria east is the “wild wild west no more” following the efforts of Garscom, Chubb and the police. Vice chairperson of neighbourhood watch, Garscom, Herklaas Meyer attributed the decline in crime in the area to proactive action. He said the area north of Solomon Mahlangu Drive, west of Woodlands and south of Atterbury Road was now patrolled regularly by Garscom, Chubb and the police. “A proactive 24/7 action makes criminals uncomfortable,” said Meyer. Garsfontein Police spokesperson, Captain Ilze Jones confirmed that crime was now under control in this area. Meyer said Garscom’s aim going into the next year would be to get more people involved. “We want a larger community involvement to be established. We have appointed two women who goes from street to street arranging street meetings to get people involved. Every street also has a Whatsapp group. Existing community projects will go ahead. These projects inclu…

This is when your home is most likely to be broken into in South Africa

Home robbery and housebreaking are among the most frightening and dangerous crimes to experience. It is frightening because it violates our private space and the one place that we think of as our sanctuary. According to the latest report released by Statistics South Africa, Exploring the extent of and circumstances surrounding housebreaking/burglary and home robbery, the general crime rate in terms of the proportion of households that experience crime has been declining during the last five years. This reality, however, has not quelled the growing perception that crime is on the increase in South Africa, the stats body said. Over 50% of all crimes experienced by households in South Africa in 2015/16 were housebreaking. Home robbery (11.9%) was the second most common type of crime experienced by South African households. Whites had the highest rates of victimisation compared to other groups both in 2011 and 2015/16. However, whites experienced the sharpest decline of househ…

Elektriese heinings: Hoe veilig is hulle werklik?

Meeste mense steun swaar op hul elektriese heinings vir veiligheid en vertrou dit blindelings as 'n "ondeurdringbare" linie, en met reg ook so. Maar hierdie spesifieke item is telkemale, weens verskeie faktore ter sprake, nie aangewese om goeie beskerming te bied teen huisbewoners nie! Mense moet hulle dus nie blindstaar teen 'n elektriese heining vir "totale" beskerming nie en dit net in samewerking met ander items inspan as toegangsbeheermiddel teen betreders en inbrekers. Hier is 'n paar redes daarvoor en wenke daaromtrent: Elektriese heinings is 'n taamlike duur item om aan te skaf (en ook in stand te hou) Elektriese heinings verg baie instandhouding en sorg, veral as dit aanvanklik swak ge-installeer is. Bossies, takke en blare wat daarmee kontak maak, affekteer die werking daarvan negatief Hierdie goed word meestal ondergeskik ge-installeer deur onbevoegde werkers met min Tegniese kennis, ondervinding of opleiding tot hul beskikking Dieselfde met 'doen-dit-self'…

Wenke om jou woning te beveilig teen indringers

Die grensmure, omheining en hekke rondom ŉ huis bied ŉ versperring teen ongewenste besoekers en inbrake. Hieronder is ŉ paar doeltreffende wenke om jou huis se versperrings na te gaan en in stand te hou. Ondersoek die omheining Spuit die aluminiumheining elke jaar af en vee dit skoon af met ŉ lap. Laat enige swak of stukkende plekke in die heining herstel, want dit is ŉ sagte teiken vir indringers. Heinings en hekke is ook die ideale habitat vir bye en perdebye om nes te maak. Termiete vernietig houtheinings, maak dit moeilik om heinings te herstel en hou ŉ bedreiging vir ŉ huis in. Kry professionele hulp om alle swerms en neste uit heinings en hekke te verwyder. Wend insekdoder op die grond onder die heining aan om infestering te voorkom. Ondersoek die mure Soek sagte plekke in die mure. Dit kan die gevolg van waterlekplekke of vogtigheid wees en kan die mure laat bars. Kry professionele advies as dit lyk of daar waterskade in die mure kan wees. Kyk of mure…

Crucial tips to improve safety when residing on a farm

Security advisor Henk Boshoff says that farmers should avoid becoming soft targets for potential farm attackers. He spoke to Gerhard Uys about making a farm and its surrounding communities safer. In South Africa, being a farmer is more than twice as dangerous as being a police officer, and a farmer or farmworker is almost four times more likely to be murdered than the average South African. Henk Boshoff, who lives on a farm near Standerton, Mpumalanga, and his partner Mark Wilson, who works from the Strand in the Western Cape, are partners in a security company, Community Assets Tactical Security (CATS). They advise farmers on how to approach farm and community security, and put them in contact with those who can implement security infrastructure at the best prices. The area in which Henk lives was known for high crime rates, but after the community organised itself, this rate dropped drastically. “Farmers and farming communities are soft targets. They must b…

Wees nugter en waaksaam met wat jy op die kuberruim oor jou kinders deel

Hopenlik hou ouers dikwels hul kinders se gebruik van die sosiale media fyn dop, maar hulle moet ook kyk na hul eie plasings, waarsku navorsers in ŉ nuwe opname. Deesdae word daar feitlik van ouers verwag om gereeld foto’s van hul kinders aanlyn te plaas om vriende en familie op die hoogte te hou van wat hulle doen, maar dit kan negatiewe ─ en selfs angswekkende ─ gevolge hê, volgens die navorsers. “Dis alles baie nuut. Ons ouers het nie hiermee te doen gehad nie,” sê dr. Bahareh Keith, ŉ pediatriese assistent by die Universiteit van Florida se College of Medicine in Gainesville. Voor die koms van sosiale media kon ouers hul kinders in die verleentheid stel deur ou fotoalbums te wys. Nou los die dinge wat ouers aanlyn openbaar ─ sommige goed, sommige nie so goed nie ─ ŉ blywende “digitale voetspoor”, verduidelik Keith. Hierdie digitale voetspore is besig om die norm te word: studies het getoon dat 92 persent van 2-jarige kinders in die Verenigde State ŉ aanlynteenwo…

Pretend to be a skelm and secure your home against burglars

According to the UK's Home Office Statistics, home owners are twice as likely to be burgled within 12 months of moving homes. "In South Africa, it is more than likely that this is true as home owners are unfamiliar with the 'weak' spots in their home security," says Mary-Jane Lefevre; call centre manager at ooba (formerly MortgageSA). "Safety will always be a priority in South Africa," says Lefevre. "Securing your home should be one of the first things you do when you move into a new home." When moving into a new home 'act like a skelm' suggests Lefevre. "Carefully case out your new home as a potential target," says Lefevre. "Try all the access points such as gates, windows, doors and even the roof to see if there are any potential entries." The most valuable asset a burglar has is time, so any preventative measure installed to delay his entrance is beneficial. "Tidy up your garden," says Lefevre. "Having a tidy, trim garden will make it more difficult for…

WEES WAKKER, WEES PARAAT, WEES REG: DIE KORT EN DIE LANK VAN PLAASVEILIGHEID

Plaasveiligheid is jou eie verantwoordelikheid en geen beskermingsmaatreëls is ‘n waarborg dat jy nie ‘n slagoffer van ‘n ernstige geweldsmisdaad sal word nie. Maak seker dat jy ‘n plan het van wat om te doen as daar ‘n insident op jou plaas sou wees, ‘n onwettige grondbesetting of betreding sou plaasvind of as daar dalk enige ander wetsoortreding op jou plaas sou wees – soos byvoorbeeld die jag van wild met honde. Beskermingsmaatreëls gaan jou nie vrywaar van ‘n insident nie, maar gaan die booswigte vertraag en jou waarsku om jouself voor te berei op dit wat kan volg. Wees ten alle tye waaksaam en paraat. As daar iets is wat nie reg lyk nie of uit plek is, dan is daar gewoonlik fout. Wees op die uitkyk. Besin oor hoe jy gaan optree indien jy ‘n slagoffer van ‘n ernstige geweldsmisdaad sou word. Gaan jy vries, weghardloop of terugslaan? Oefen om kalm te bly, die situasie reg te lees en die regte optrede dienooreenkomstig te neem. Wees kreatief om die booswigte uit te oorlê…

Do your online photo’s put you, your family or your belongings at risk?

Are your online photos putting your family, possessions, and safety at risk? They probably are, and what you see in this short video should make you think twice before uploading personal photos Sites like Facebook and Pinterest do strip this info out, but it would probably be better to leave Geo Location tagging off on your cellphone. It seems like just about everyone has a smart phone these days, and they're using them to shoot photos which they share with friends and even post online so that total strangers can view them. It's so easy to do, most people don't even think twice about sharing personal photos. Social media sites encourage you to share your photos and offer free apps making it easy to do. Just one click to the shoot the photo, and another click posts it on the web for all to see. But is it possible that posting photos this way could be putting you or your family in danger? And could strangers use these photos as an aid to commit crimes? The answer to both t…