With about a month to go to the national lifesaving championships, which will see more than 1,000 competitors and their families flock to the city, the host venue is in disarray.
The Kings Beach Lifesaving Club is unscrupulously being broken into and stripped by vandals.
Club management has now issued an impassioned plea to the metro to help it stave off the tidal wave of theft and vandalism.
Run entirely by volunteers, the club has been saving lives, developing nippers, building social cohesion and showcasing Nelson Mandela Bay for decades — but its legacy is being ripped apart by thugs.
With just a few weeks to go to the April 28 to May 3 DHL SA Lifesaving Championships, the situation is at crisis point.
Kings Beach Lifesaving Club chair Paul Lynch said on Tuesday the 73-year-old club was keen to do the city proud but it urgently needed the metro’s help.
“There will be 1,000 young competitors here for the championships, as well as their parents,” Lynch said.
“We know from previous events it will generate [up to] R60m for the city over the eight days.
“But we have had four incidents of criminality in the past two weeks alone.
“In one of those incidents on Saturday night, they pulled our water pipes out the back wall, so right now we have no water from our taps and our toilets don’t flush.
“We have to spend on average R100,000 a year trying to defend ourselves against thieves and vandals, and repairing the damage.”
He said they received zero funding or support from the metro at present.
“Yet we support them in multiple ways including supplementing their corps of lifeguards and developing youngsters from previously disadvantaged backgrounds, teaching them about the ocean and life skills.
“We urgently need the municipality to step up and help us with security and maintenance.”
Lynch and club secretary Tess Kotze pointed out where the thieves had peeled off the steel pelmet around the roof, and where the insulation mats had popped out, leaving a gap for the rain to get in.
In the hall, the ceiling was lumpy, indicating where rainwater was starting to damage it, and the club was forced to block off one section of windows with a sheet of galvanised iron because the metal frames were gouged out and removed.
In the latest incident on Sunday, thieves entered through the bathroom roof and stole the shower heads and the piping from the basin and urinals.
The wall was still black with fingerprint dust, but detectives were unable to find prints.
Kotze said a similar incident had happened a year ago.
“On that occasion they finished off by smashing everything. So these facilities which have now been stripped were quite new.”
Outside, a light had been ripped from the wall in the braai area, and the gate to the beach no longer closed properly because of the numerous break-ins.
Lynch said the club and its members, supported by a few sponsors, covered the cost of all the security apparatus, including cameras.
These were installed as high as possible to try to keep them safe.
“We also have to fix the perimeter fence now and then when it starts to rust, and we try keep the bush on the dune next to us low, otherwise vagrants sleep there.”
In the storeroom, the thieves had come through the roof and upended a fridge to get to the wiring, apparently unconcerned about the noise it must have made as it fell.
Two other fridges were also stripped and fluorescent lights had been jerked out the wall, apparently examined for valuable parts, and then smashed.
Thugs also wormed their way into a shipping container in which various items for the upcoming nationals were being kept, including a long rope, which they cut into pieces.
Lynch said his team was also hoping that the metro would reinstate the long-term lease the club used to hold, but which had been withdrawn some years back.
“If we had that lease, we could more easily attract sponsors who could use it as a tax rebate.”
He said the Kings Beach Lifesaving Club and its five sister clubs around the city were a key part of the transformation in SA lifesaving which saw the Eastern Cape take the national championships two years ago for the first time.
“But this club is about much more than just the sport of lifesaving.
“We teach the kids CPR and other techniques which they could use to save someone’s life.
“We teach them to have respect for the ocean.”
He said if the Bay performed well at the upcoming nationals, there was a possibility it could host the International Lifesaving Championships in 2028.
“We have the perfect conditions. We just need to protect our facilities.”
Ward 2 councillor Sean Tappan, who was set to start a meeting with lifesaving bosses and metro beach officials at 5pm about the Kings Beach crime issue, said the Bay had to secure its assets.
“This lifesaving event and others like it are hugely important to our metro,” Tappan said.
“We need to drive safety and security. To do that we need more boots on the ground in this area, especially at night, which is when crime happens.
“We also need to clamp down on our bylaws, including the ones related to vagrancy and the many guys who are now sleeping in the dunes.”
Beachfront Cluster lead Tati Tsunke agreed.
“We need more patrols at night.”
Municipal spokesperson Sithembiso Soyaya said they recognised the considerable value the upcoming championships held for the city and were determined to counter the crime problem.
“It is a key event that promotes water sports tourism, drives economic activity and enhances the city’s appeal to potential investors.
“The municipality is deeply concerned about the ongoing theft and vandalism affecting the club and the broader Kings Beach precinct.
“We are actively working with the police and private security to strengthen crime prevention efforts in the area.”
He said measures currently in place included increased metro police patrols at Kings Beach and surrounds; collaboration with the police on intelligence-sharing and operations targeting metal theft syndicates; municipal security enhancements to deter break-ins and theft; engagement with scrap metal dealers to curb illegal trade in stolen metals; and engaging community stakeholders to support crime prevention initiatives.
“We acknowledge that these criminal attacks on the club are unacceptable, and we won’t rest until they are stopped.
“We urge the public to report suspicious activities at our 24-hour hotline on 041-508-5501 or 041-585-1555.”
The Herald
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