Toni Buys receives an award for saving a man’s life from Table View police chief Colonel Tjikamba Mbangu and Table View CPF chairman David Harris. Picture:Tara Isaacs
A community hero has sounded a call for action as burglaries and robberies continue to plague Table View.
There have been at least six such incidents since February, according to police reports, and the police have warned residents to keep windows and doors locked even when they are at home (“Home invaders target Table View,” Tabletalk, April 10).
Two men were arrested following a robbery at a Cabernet Road house on Sunday April 14, at 8.30pm, when four men barged through an unlocked door and surprised a family as they watched TV, says Table View police spokesperson Captain Adriana Chandler.
The intruders tied up each member of the family and ransacked the home, taking jewellery, liquor, bank cards and cellphones before fleeing, she said.
With the help of armed response officers and a vigilant neighbour, a suspect found in a neighbour’s yard was arrested along with a second suspect who was found down the street, said Captain Chandler.
“Both suspects were brought into the police station and were found in possession of the stolen jewellery,” said Captain Chandler.
The victims had identified both men, aged 27 and 35 from Nyanga, she added.
Table View police chief Colonel Tjikamba Mbangu said the incident showed the importance of “knowing one's neighbour” and working together as a community. He encouraged residents to join the neighbourhood watch and street groups.
Table View Community Police Forum secretary Toni Buys, a trained first-aider, received an award from CPF chairman David Harrison and Colonel Mbangu on Wednesday April 10 for saving a man’s life after he was shot during a robbery at a Table View home on Friday February 16.
Ms Buys was fetching her son from school when she saw the alert on a WhatsApp group that the man had been shot and needed urgent help.
She asked a neighbour to watch her son and rushed to the scene.
“It was like a scene from a movie, perhaps something we would watch in an ER series,” she said.
Lacking any equipment, she improvised and used plastic shopping bags to apply pressure to the man’s gunshot wound until the ambulance arrived.
As she held the victim, she realised she had helped the family previously when a dog had mauled their cat, but that, she said, was nothing compared to the anger, shock and terror she saw on the faces of the family in the wake of the robbery and shooting.
The man recovered, but the family is still dealing with the trauma of that day, and they declined to comment other than to thank Ms Buys.
“I am constantly checking in on this family as they have suffered a horrible ordeal and are mentally battling to come to terms with the trauma they experienced on that Friday, so I am helping them get counselling,” she said.
At the CPF meeting where she received her award, Ms Buys appealed to the CPF members to help the vulnerable and elderly in the community.
“The CPF hopes to introduce a project that will include helping the people who live alone and are elderly, who do not live in gated communities, and help equip them with the necessary tools to keep them safe.”
The CPF, she said, was seeking ways to help those residents who were not technologically savvy and might not have access to a WhatsApp group in an emergency.
“This incident once again just highlights the importance of getting involved with your community organisations, and how it can save one's life if you are connected,” she said, adding: “We need to look out for neighbours; this is a call to all to take action.”
Ward councillor Jonathan Mills praised Ms Buys, saying: “This recognition of Ms Buys’s willingness to go above and beyond in service to our community is richly deserved.”
To get involved with your street group, email Ms Buys at secretary@cpftableview.co.za