Burning issue as city emergency staff are stretched to the limits

• 7 Feb 2014
• Cape Argus
• Anél Lewis METRO WRITER anel.lewis@inl.co.za

STAFF numbers across the City of Cape Town’s safety and security departments are “inadequate”, with fire and rescue services falling short of the numbers needed to be compliant.

PICTURE: MASIXOLE FENIDEMAND The city has only 954 firefighters, making the department ‘heavily understaffed’ to curb fires like the Valhalla Park blaze

In terms of the South African National Code for community protection for fire, the city needs to have a staff of 1 515 operational firefighters for compliance.

But according to the department’s business plan for the 2014/15 financial year, it has only 954 operational firefighters, making this one of the departments to be “heavily understaffed”.

Richard Bosman, executive director of safety and security, noted in the report that a further 240 reservists would be employed at the end of this financial year.

“This department needs to remain progressive in order to keep abreast of the ever-changing human and geographical environment and technologies of an ever-expanding city.”

Traffic services, also short on staff, will be stretched even further as the city hosts more events, and with the extension of the MyCiTi bus routes across the city.

Traffic chief Heathcliff Thomas said the city’s traffic staff were “clearly not adequate” for law enforcement across the metro.

“Critical staffing needs to exist in the enforcement environment and the increase in events and the introduction of the Integrated Rapid Transport system will severely impact on the small contingent of staff.”

There are 318 traffic officers in the traffic enforcement section who focus on daily traffic patrols, and they are supported by 13 traffic wardens. But Thomas said that since these officers worked three duties a day, there was reduced deployment at certain times. Annual leave, study and sick leave also put strain on staff capacity.

He said 456 uniformed traffic officials were employed permanently and 126 part- time traffic attendants manned road crossing points.

The department exceeded its targets last year in terms of enforcement and the reduction of accidents at the five highest frequency intersections.

Thomas said the department had set several targets for the next financial year, including a zero tolerance approach to speeding and drunk driving. More than R9 million would be spent on upgrading facilities that would improve service delivery, and there were plans to use the Ghost Squad more extensively.

But Thomas called for the appointment of additional staff, more parttime attendants and the possible use of volunteers to act as reserve traffic wardens at events.

Although Cape Town’s revenue from traffic fines, at 38 percent, is above the national average of below 20 percent, there was a sharp drop in this income for the previous financial year. It fell far short of the budgeted income of R167 653 for the 2012/13 financial year. Thomas, pictured left, said the reduction in camera fines issue could be attributed to the visible enforcement strategy of traffic services. There was also a delay in sending out fine notices because of technical problems. But Thomas noted in his report that the fine revenue income budget was unrealistic. Because fines were set by the court, they could not be raised annually.

Rudolph Wiltshire, chief of law enforcement and specialised services, said the shortage of patrol vehicles affected service delivery.

Metro police chief Wayne le Roux noted in his department’s business plan that service delivery protests had prevented the metro police from achieving some of its performance targets for last year.

The department plans to appoint more than 360 reservist firefighters over the next five years to supplement the professional fire service.

Despite its capacity constraints, the city’s fire services dealt with more than 26 000 incidents last year and exceeded its target of responding to calls within 14 minutes.