Safety and security enforcement in Nelson Mandela Bay has gone high-tech, with the addition of a high-speed fibre network and hundreds of CCTV cameras and drones to boost crime-fighting and crime-prevention operations.
Police K9 Unit members are dispatched to the remote coastline on the outskirts of Gqeberha, armed with GPS coordinates and the knowledge that they will find a perlemoen poacher's illicit booty.
Within seconds of arrival, their dogs search the area and recover thousands of rands worth of illegally harvested perlemoen, wetsuits and diving equipment hidden among the bushes near the Cape Recife Nature Reserve.
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Their job is made infinitely easier thanks to the detailed information provided to them by Nelson Mandela Bay's latest safety and security asset - drone technology.
While this innovation was officially launched by the Mandela Bay Development Agency and deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk earlier this month, the contractor responsible for the drones has been piloting the project for months to augment the capabilities of law enforcement in the metro.
"This is the latest weapon in our crime-fighting armoury. Along with our camera network infrastructure, these drones will play a vital role in our fight against violent crime, as well as our efforts to counter vandalism of crucial infrastructure across the city," Van Niekerk...
