When Ettie woke on Sunday morning to the sound of an explosion and neighbours screaming for help, her thought was to assist them as fast as she could!
Johannesburg, South Africa (17 September 2018) – South Africa’s latest crime statistics were released last week, and with them, doubt and anger about the future of South Africa filled the country but this story is exactly what South Africa needs. Belief in our emergency responders and South Africans working together to help each other.
Ettie woke up to the sounds of screaming and the smell of smoke at around 3am. She got out of bed and opened her curtains and immediately pushed the panic button on her Namola app.
Within seconds, her phone rang and Ettie, completely heartbroken, explained to the responder what she was seeing.
“Hello. Listen this is urgent! The house next door to me, this whole house is on fire!!! And I can hear people calling out for help.”
Lumka, the Namola responder quickly contacted emergency services, who arrived on the scene in less than 15 minutes to find an entire house engulfed in flames.
“I called her immediately and she was panicking. Her neighbour’s house was on fire. It sounded like there was an explosion. I contacted the fire engines, the ambulance and the police just in case there were any injuries or someone was trapped inside.”
What tends to happen when you make an emergency call is that once you put the phone down, you are left in a space of uncertainty but one of the Namola features is that the caller is kept up-to-date with everything that is happening, including where the emergency services are and how long they will take to get there.
“Lumka continuously texted me, telling me what was happening and keeping me calm. They kept me in the loop and feeling safe.”
With the help of Ettie, Lumka, Namola and the emergency services, the entire family and two dogs were saved from the burning building. But it was the incredible service that has reaffirmed Etties’ belief in South African emergency responders and made her feel proudly South African again.
“That evening, from Namola, to the fire department, to the South African police, to the ambulance services… what I witnessed that night was astronomical, proudly South African and gave me so much confidence in this country.
I wish we could emulate what I witnessed there, in the whole of South Africa.”
Watch how this incredible incident played out: