Shocking State of Storms River Police Station

Statement by Henni Britz MP – DA Koukamma Constituency Leader:

The Democratic Alliance (DA) will be escalating the delipidated and unsafe state of the Storms River Police Station to the Acting Minister of Police for urgent intervention.

The shocking situation at the police station was uncovered after I conducted an unannounced oversight inspection and confirmed long-standing community complaints about the state of the station.

It became evident that regulations governing the protection, confidentiality and proper handling of victims, particularly survivors of gender-based violence and rape, cannot be adequately implemented at this police station. This failure is not due to a lack of professionalism or commitment by SAPS members, but rather the result of severely inadequate infrastructure and resources.

The Victim Support Centre is in a deplorable condition. The floor is rotten, structurally unstable, and poses a safety risk to both victims and staff. The consulting room contains only one broken-down sofa and a single plastic chair – conditions wholly unsuitable for interviewing traumatised victims of violent crime. Compounding this indignity, is the fact that the only public toilet at the station is not operational.

Equally alarming is the station’s critical lack of operational resources. Visible policing has access to only one vehicle, while detective services also rely on only one. This constitutes the station’s entire available fleet. As a result, there are times when no vehicle is available to respond to emergency calls from the public. This places both residents and police officers at unacceptable risk. Communities in remote and rural areas are entitled to the same level of protection as any other part of the country, and police officers are entitled to the basic tools required to perform their duties effectively.

According to the station commander, these challenges have been reported repeatedly to higher authorities, yet no meaningful intervention has followed.

In response, I will submit written parliamentary questions to the Acting Minister of Police, Prof. Firoz Cachalia, and issue a formal letter of demand on behalf of Tsitsikamma residents calling for intervention and feedback.

The DA remains committed to fighting for a professional, well-resourced police service capable of safeguarding communities and restoring public confidence in law enforcement. Community safety cannot be achieved where police stations are left to operate under degraded conditions and chronic resource shortages.