KARIEGA – Kariega residents face difficulties reaching police for emergency assistance, with multiple contact numbers for the local SAPS station either diverting to voicemail or connecting callers to other stations, while the 10111 emergency line in Gqeberha remains affected by technical problems.
According to SAPS spokesperson Captain Andre Beetge, the 10111 call centre has experienced technical difficulties with its telephone system since the evening of Monday, 19 October.
He said call takers can hear callers, but callers cannot hear SAPS members during calls.
“Technicians were assessing the fault and working to repair the system,” he said, appealing to residents to be patient while the problem was being addressed.
However, an independent investigation by the Express on Tuesday, 20 October, found that several published contact numbers for SAPS Uitenhage Police Station were not providing a reliable way to reach the station.
Calls made to 082 301 7804, 041 996 3401 and 041 996 3438 at 12:06 went to voicemail. A call to 041 996 4534, provided by Crime Stop after it was contacted on 08600 10111 at 12:08, also went to voicemail.
Crime Stop provided a second number, 082 414 6504, which has reportedly been associated with Matatiele SAPS for more than a year. Further attempts to reach the station through 041 506 7420 at 12:16 and 040 636 1794 at 15:09 also went to voicemail.
A call to 082 302 5807 at 14:49 was answered at Swartkops SAPS rather than Kariega.
The Express also contacted Despatch and Kamesh police stations, which provided contact numbers that were likewise non-operational when tested.
When asked about the reported inaccessibility of SAPS Uitenhage Police Station, provincial police spokesperson Colonel Siphokazi Mawisa confirmed that the technical problem affected only the 10111 line.
“No other stations reported any problems,” she said.
Beetge advised residents requiring emergency police assistance to contact their nearest SAPS station while technicians work to restore the 10111 telephone system.
“Please make contact with your closest SAPS station if emergency SAPS assistance is required for the interim until the 10111 phone system is back in operation again,” he concluded.
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