Pretoria - In a bid to curb increasing incidents of crime at the Table Mountain National Park, more rangers will be dispatched to the area, South African National Parks (SANParks) announced on Wednesday.
SANParks CEO Dr David Mabunda said 50 additional rangers will be employed at the park. Currently the park employs 43 rangers and 12 visitor safety officers.
The rangers will be responsible for issues such as visitor safety, visitor rescue, anti-poaching, disaster management and crime prevention in general.
SANParks said the recruitment process would begin immediately and the first recruits are expected to report for duty within the next three months.
"We cannot allow the internationally iconic status of Table Mountain National Park to be negatively impacted by ongoing crime in this area. The economic implications for the Cape Town City and the country are significant ... we have to act decisively in dealing with this issue.
"At the end of the day, the Table Mountain National Park is there for all, and we want both our domestic and international visitors to be able to enjoy the park to its fullest without any fear," Mabunda said.
SANParks said it would continue working with the SAPS, Metro Police, provincial officials and other partners as part of a multi-stakeholder approach to combating crime on Table Mountain. - BuaNews
