Load shedding is not only a frustration for every single household and business owner, but it has now also become the perfect opportunity for criminals.
Waseemah Flaendorp, a community leader from Macassar, said residents are not safe during bouts of power cuts. “When load shedding starts and the street lights are off, especially after 19:00, then it becomes too dangerous to walk outside in the streets, because there is an increased possibility that one will get robbed,” she pointed out.
Flaendorp claimed to have heard stories of people being targeted by robbers in the streets, adding that house burglars also target homes during load shedding. “One can’t sleep peacefully, because your home could be burgled.”
Rhoda-Ann Bazier of the Macassar Community Policing Forum has also heard of pedestrians being robbed in the streets.
“The issue is that many people who are robbed do not report these cases to the police,” she said.
A spokesperson for Macassar police said they are unaware of these robberies and house break-ins taking place at night during load shedding, but confirmed cable theft is on the rise during electricity outages.
“In many of these robberies the perpetrator is usually someone known by the family, someone who uses drugs and robs them to get money to feed his or her addiction,”
She said the local police station is currently facing a resource challenge and cannot be everywhere all the time.
“That is why it is important for people to go to the police and open cases.”
