The Ann Harding home, part of the Cheshire Homes, is facing a hard time after having their adapted bus stolen in December; now they are fundraising to cover the insurance shortfall to purchase a new bus and adapt it for wheelchairs.
Johannesburg, South Africa (02 February 2025) – While we always aim to highlight the good in South Africa, we are not blind to the bad stuff, the struggles and the heartache faced by many. That is why we always aim to inspire a bit of hope, a moment that leads to a smile. That is the case for the Ann Harding Cheshire Homes which recently faced an incredible hardship but is turning to the public to inspire a little hope.
On the 18th December, the home’s driver was on the highway between Malibongwe and William Nicol, on his way to fetch an order for the team, when he was hijacked. The tracker installed in the vehicle sent an alert to the team back at the home, advising that the vehicle was in an unsafe area
“Our Facilities Manager called our driver, who told her that he was okay. We could see that the bus was in a remote area in Soweto and was not moving, and when questioning the driver, he advised that they were in traffic and that he would move soon. We later found out that he had a gun to his head at the time, and the hijackers were listening to the calls and telling him what to say.”
Thankfully, the Facilities Manager didn’t quite feel comfortable with the situation and decided to call the tracking company, which then called the police to assist in checking on the driver.
“Sadly by this time, the bus had already been moved, and they did not find it. In the interim, our driver was dropped off on the Highway near Soweto, he managed to make his way to the Police Station, and called us.
Some of us went through to Soweto to fetch our driver, and spent the whole afternoon at the police station while they questioned him, and took him back to the place where he was dropped off. They took the case very seriously. After leaving the police station we took our driver to Olivedale Hospital to be checked out, and thankfully there were no serious injuries. He received counselling the next morning from the Honeydew Trauma Centre, and has received additional counselling since.”
The team continue to monitor their driver for any signs of distress but he seems to be doing well. The next heartache was that the vehicle seemingly disappeared. It’s tracker was removed and it was not able to be recovered.
“This vehicle was the one purchased in 2022 to replace the previously hijacked vehicle, and so it was our ‘newer’ bus. These busses are specially adapted with a hoist to lift the Residents, in their wheelchairs, into the bus. This is the only way that we can transport most of our Residents, as they are unable to transfer out of their chairs, into another vehicle.
The vehicles are used to take Residents to medical appointments, hospital visits, therapy appointments, social visits with friends and families, shopping days, social events organised by us, Church services etc. In short, they give our Residents some sort of independence, which is vitally important for them to have, given that they already have limitations being wheelchair dependent.”
They have started the insurance process but are facing a financial shortfall of R 321,147.00. The team have gotten the quote for the new bus including all the adaptions that need to be made. Feeling stuck, they hate having to ask for help but have also become extremely limited in how they can serve the residents of the Ann Harding Cheshire home.
“We realise that January is not a good time to be asking for money, however, the sooner we can replace this bus, the sooner our Residents can resume their independence. Currently we are having to limit their trips to essential trips such as medical appointments and hospital visits.”
For those who are able to assist, the Ann Harding Cheshire Home is a registered PBO with Section 18a Status, and are able to provide Section 18a certificates for tax purposes. If you would like to assist, you can email Jackie Kyle, the fundraising manager here for banking details.
As for preventing hijacking in the future, the team have several ideas that plan to implement with the new bus and their existing fleet.
“Going forward, we are looking at what measures we can take to try and limit the risk of this happening again.
Drivers will be trained in defensive driving techniques, as well as what to do in the case of a hijacking. We will also have the registration numbers put on the roof of the vehicles, so as to be easily spotted by police helicopters.
Drivers will also be equipped with smart phones and will be required to have live tracking at all times. Of course, none of these steps guarantee that this won’t happen again, but we will take them.”
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