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Crime reported in December 2019

Housebreaking
Usmar Street
Jan Enslin Street
La Cornillier Street

Attempted housebreak
Stollreither Street

Theft of motor vehicle
Gustav Crescent (ROSEPARK)

Attempted theft of motor vehicles
Van Reenen Street

Lucky draw: Referral winner

Congratulations to Straus and Amanda Bell who won a radio and are now part of our FICH-Net radio community.

A special mention to Werner van Eck who made the most successful referrals of 2019.

Frogfoot’s smart street poles to improve quality of life for Fichardt Park residents

In an industry first for South Africa, Frogfoot Networks (Pty) Ltd, a licensed open access fibre network provider, will be rolling out smart street poles to provide the community of Fichardt Park, Bloemfontein, with well-lit streets, improved public safety and security, and access to WiFi connectivity.

When looking to expand fibre infrastructure in the suburb, Frogfoot was approached by the Fichardt Park Neighbourhood Association (FNA) about laying additional infrastructure that could be used to improve the quality of life of the neighbourhood’s residents, and has taken on this challenge as part of its commitment to the community.

Frogfoot will install 33 of these smart street poles at predetermined crime hotspots and on main routes in order to utilise closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras to their full potential. Frogfoot will be responsible for bearing the cost of installation as well as ongoing maintenance of this infrastructure.

Access to the live feeds will be provided to the FNA at no charge. This implementation also has the capability of being extended to include automatic number plate recognition, with integration into the SA Police’s database of stolen vehicles.

In addition, the columns will make use of highly efficient LED bulbs, together with safe low voltage power distributed through the fibre ducts to light up the streets in a more environmentally friendly manner. Frogfoot will further provide backup power from its nodes by using generators or uninterruptible power supply (UPS).

But, it’s not just about the security cameras or the energy-efficient lighting. What makes these street poles really smart is the ability to add on a variety of services, which Frogfoot will monetise in order to install and support this infrastructure.

The first on the list is the addition of wireless local area network (WLAN) infrastructure, which effectively turns each one of the smart street lights into an open access WiFi access point, which a wireless internet service provider (WISP) can use to provide improved internet connectivity to the suburb’s residents.

Residents are already looking forward to having access to real-time information that will contribute to better decision making and assist the security team to act faster. One community member, Des Bothma, commended the FNA for turning to modern technology to help make Fichardt Park “the best neighbourhood in Bloemfontein”.

If you would like to find out more information regarding this project, please contact the Bloemfontein Project Manager, Shawn van Heerden on 074 449 7176.

Find out more about froggin’ awesome fibre here: www.frogfoot.com

Noise control

Rest disruption can occur anytime of the day or night (eg. residents who work evening shifts need rest while others mow their lawns). Noise is a common problem in our neighbourhood and persistent noise disturbances leads to great frustration among residents. It is, therefore, pertinent that residents know that there are clear laws regarding noise levels and that they can and should take action.

The following procedure should be followed when calling in a complaint:

24/7 noise complaint/control number: 051 405 8771

You are trying to read while your neighbour is playing extremely loud music.

1. You contact the number when you hear your neighbour’s music.
2. The police will send a vehicle to your address.
3. The officer will stop his vehicle a sufficiently far distance from your residence and listen if he can hear the music as well.
4. If he determines that the music is a true disruption, then he will visit the source of the disturbance.
5. He will visit the owner of the residence to turn down the volume and give him a warning.
6. Police officer leaves.
7. The disturbance continues and you phone the number again.
8. A police officer will repeat the process.
9. A second warning will be given and the officer will turn down the volume himself and leave.
10. The disturbance continues and you phone for a third time.
11. The process is repeated.
12. The police officer will take your statement and open a case docket.
13. The officer will confiscate your neighbour’s stereo system.
14. The case goes to court.

This process is followed for all noise disturbances.