Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 114, January 2019 | Page 36

SAFETY SPECIAL
Criminal Gang
police station and eventually, after much pleading, managed to get them to
come with me, as I suspected the attackers would’ve still been in the area. It’s
a massive relief that we managed to catch them and get the gun, which was
fully loaded and ready for use!”
“From Muizenberg to St James, I ran along what is known as ‘The Catwalk,’
a great pathway between the train tracks and the ocean. I love running there.
I noticed a guy with a bicycle who I had seen earlier, on my way to Kalk
Bay, and I got a bad feeling about him, but there were other people about.
There was a girl on the bench tying her shoe, and there was another runner
up ahead, about to disappear on the path, so I thought it must be safe. As I
passed the guy, and then the girl, a man with a hoodie stepped out from the
tunnel that runs underneath the train tracks to the road. I tried to pass but he
blocked me and in that split second I knew.” “I had actually strapped on my shoes and gone for a run the day after my attack,
because I do not want to live in fear, but I got into contact with the Muizenberg
Trail Dawgs and joined the group, and it has been so incredible. We have all
become great friends and the group has grown so much over the past year and
a half. I am, in some strange way, so very grateful that everything happened the
way that it did,
as something
so awesome
came out of
such a horrible
incident.
We’ve built
such strong
friendships as
a result, and
a group of the
‘Dawgs’ even
accompanied
me to court
when I was
asked to testify.
They have been
such a great
support.”
“I immediately started to scream as loud as possible, so much so that I didn’t
have a voice for a week! He pulled a gun out and held it to my stomach, and
with the other hand he started grabbing at me. I fought back, all the while
screaming, and but when I looked to the side, I noticed that the ‘lookout’ and
the girl tying her shoe were involved in this as well. Eventually he had me
pinned down on my haunches against the wall, but I was still fighting back
and screaming as loud as I possibly could.”
“The thing that saved me was that two people close by heard me screaming.
They shouted back from the tunnel, then came to investigate the screaming
and witnessed the scene. This startled my attacker and gave me the slightest
gap to get away. I climbed over the train tracks and started running in the
direction of the Muizenberg Police Station, which was about 1.5km away, and
it felt like the longest, toughest run of my life. My legs felt like lead. I got to the
“It is a complete miracle that I walked away unharmed, and I thank God for that.
In the words of the policeman taking my statement, ‘Lady, do you know how
lucky you are to be alive?’ It turned out that the three already had warrants out
on them for other crimes, but it took a full year for the court case to take place,
with me constantly having to follow-up with the police. They are so understaffed
and service such a large area that it felt like a losing battle at times.”
“After the incident, and a range of every kind of emotion one can imagine in
the days after – I did go for trauma counselling – I went on to the community
Facebook page to alert the locals of what had happened and requested that if
anyone had experienced something similar, to please go to the police station,
as their attackers may have been the same guys that attacked me. It’s so
important to report these things, I cannot emphasise that enough.”
“As I hit the post button, I noticed the post directly under mine. Incredibly, it
read ‘We are a newly formed group of trail runners in the area. If you are keen
to join us for a run, get in touch.’ Well, this was just heaven sent! Up until that
point I had been running on my own on the road, as I didn’t really have any
other options, but after my incident, the amount of loved ones begging me to
quit running, or saying ‘please don’t run on your own,’ was overwhelming.”
Have your ICE Numbers Ready
It is vital to have the correct emergency numbers saved to your phone. In so doing, you can get help that much quicker if attacked and injured, and you position
yourself as a potential rescuer. Research the numbers for your specific area, but here are a few general numbers to begin with.
• Flying Squad (national)
10111
• Ambulance (national)
10177
Cape Town
• Cape Town City Emergency
• Table Mountain Rescue
• SANParks Visitor Safety
36
021 480 7700
021 937 0300
086 110 6417
Central Gauteng
• Johannesburg Central
• Roodepoort
• Sandton
ISSUE 114 JANUARY 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
011 375 5911
011 375 5911
011 375 5911
KwaZulu-Natal
• Durban Metro Police
• Durban Metro Ambulance
031 306 4422
031 307 7744
R
unning
within the
safety of
well-organised
events is a great
way to experience
new routes and
venues, with
marshals and
fellow runners
to maintain your
security, but when
not running in an
organised event,
group runs remain
a key first line
of defence. One
runner who swears
by the power of
having a running
crew is Kerry Red (above centre, making victory sign) from Cape Town, who
was attacked in March 2017. “It was a pretty typical Monday morning, I woke
up, put on my running shoes and headed out on my usual pre-work morning
run from Muizenberg to Kalk Bay and back. I had been doing this same run
most mornings for more than three years without incident.”