Every Wednesday morning, a group of volunteers prays at specific chosen spots in Strandfontein.

The group, which consists mostly of senior women, is called up for prayer by the Strandfontein Spiritual Crime Prevention unit of Strandfontein Police Station.

Headed by Sergeant Deon Coetzee, the group spends several hours praying and preaching at the strategically chosen locations.

Yesterday (22 July) prayer and praise were offered in Spine Road, where accidents and accompanying fatalities occur.

Spiritual crime prevention

Coetzee said this crime-prevention method works with local churches and mosques, which give input on the spiritual interventions.

The group, which meets every Wednesday, has been moving around Strandfontein over the last three years.

Road accidents

Yesterday, the group met on the corner of Welgelegen and Spine Roads.

Coetzee said the site was chosen due to the large number of accidents that had taken place on the road in a short space of time in recent weeks.

The group met at 10:00 and sang praise songs before Coetzee explained the purpose of the morning’s session in the form of a sermon.

“We as the body of Christ must intercede for them,” he said. “We need divine intervention.”

Prayer walk

The group then set out into Spine Road and prayed as they walked down it.

“We just do our bit,” Coetzee said. “But we are praying for a stop to accidents on the whole road, all the way into Stellenbosch.”

Points of concern

Coetzee said the different spots the group moves to weekly are based on crime statistics, places identified as being of concern and wherever “the spirit leads.”