Safety
This committee meets every 2nd and 4th Wednesday of each month at 10.00.
The committee is chaired by the OBSID COO Brian Amery
Other members of the committee are
This committee provides direction on the following areas of OBSID work:
Beware card scam
Obslife, Feb 2011
THE Observatory public safety contract manager, Vergil Brits, has called on residents
to be vigilant when drawing money locally.
The latest incident happened at the new Nedbank ATM in Lower Main Road next to the Observatory Bottle Store.
Vergil said a crook posing as a helpful passer-by fleeced the card of an unsuspecting
customer at the Nedbank ATM.
This follows a long history of scams aimed at the Standard Bank ATM in Station
Road.
Virgil said the fraudsters are always well dressed. They usually approach people in an assertive way, pretending to give advice on how to draw money. The best strategy is to simply refuse any help, no matter how assertive or polite the stranger is.
Public safety patroller puts life on the line
Obslife, Feb 2011
THE dramatic assault on a security guard by participants in a drug deal was a stark reminder of how the OBSID's public-safety officers risk life and limb to keep Observatory safe.
Hudson Sobetwa, 31-year-old publicsafety patroller who had been working for the OBSID since its inception in 2009, sustained extremely serious head injuries when the participants in a drug deal that he interrupted in Lower Main Road struck him twice with their car.
Hudson woke up in Groote Schuur Hospital with a fractured skull and more than fifty stitches to his head. He said early one evening just after Christmas he was patrolling near the corner of Darien Lane and Lower Main Road when he noticed what looked like a drug deal between two occupants of a car and a man at the side of the road.
No half measures for security manager
Obslife, Mar 2011
MIKHAIL Kitshoff, manager of the Vetus Schola security personnel who are contracted to patrol Observatory’s streets, is about to join the Woodstock Police Station as a reservist.
He says not only will he get a much better feel for crime he has to fight in Observatory, but it will help forge crucial relationships with the police officers that he has to work with.
And also, he says as an aside, it affords him the opportunity to “fight crime in my off time”.
“You have to be committed if you’re running [a security operation in a City Improvement District]. There can’t be half measures,” he says.
Mikhail’s aim is to make Observatory the safest of the four sectors falling under the Woodstock police station.
Walk home safely
Obslife, Mar 2011
The OBSID has established a “walking bus” for anybody who wants to walk home safely from Lower Main Road at night. The idea is that Vetus Schola guards escort groups of locals and visitors from the “bus stop” outside the tattoo parlour in Station Road to their homes. The “bus”, called Safe Home, leaves at 9.15pm, 12.15 am and 2.15am.
According to Ancois Bester of the OBSID office, a sign will be put up at the “bus stop” , courtesy of the Green Elephant backpackers in Milton Road.
Although the service is mainly aimed at students and foreign visitors who frequent the entertainment venues in Lower Main Road, anybody in Observatory can use it.
Residents can also request an ad hoc escort at any time by calling the Vetus Schola office at 021 447 1066.
Safe Home - with OBSID Public Safety Patrollers
March 2011
SAFE HOME
Take advantage of our Safe Home service in Observatory!
Every evening Obsid Public Safety patrollers will be available to escort you home from your night out in Obs.
MEETING POINT
To make use of the service, meet the security officer at the
corner of Lower Main Road and Station Road
(in front of the Tattoo shop)
Vetus Schola will be at this location at the following
TIMES
21:15
00:15
02:15
If you are travelling from the station, feel free to drop in for an escort at their offices located at the station exit. Or phone the OPS control room, from anywhere within the OBSID borders on 021-447-1066 for assistance.
The Obsid Public Safety (OPS) contract is currently operated by Vetus Schola protection services. There duty is to patrol Observatory and ensure public safety