The City of Cape Town has honoured its officials from various departments for going beyond the call of duty.
Many of these unsung heroes have faced some of the most traumatic situations while attending to scenes.
One of them is Traffic Officer Andisiwe Gxabuza who responded to a traffic accident in Somerset West in January.
The 31-year-old mother recalls the moments leading up to her wrapping a two-year-old survivor to her back and carrying him until he fell asleep.
She says: “That morning we attended a scene where the mother, father and two children were involved. The mother and father were trapped in their car and the 11- and two-year- old needed to be attended to.
“I picked the boys up and walked them to the ambulance, they were assessed and the baby was fine, the brother needed to be further assessed, so I asked the medic for a sheet and wrapped the baby around me on my back where he fell asleep while we assisted his parents.
“I needed to calm the baby, and immediately when he came to me, he calmed down, my colleagues joked that he could smell my breast milk.”
Law Enforcement officers Vernon Elias, 51, and his partner Cynthia Mlanjeni, 39, were honoured for rescuing two siblings, aged 2 and 4, from a burning car in Strand on 27 August.
They were driving along Beach Road when they noticed black smoke a kilometre away.They found a burning car with screaming children inside, the four-year-old’s hair was stuck to the roof while the dashboard was on fire.
Elias says they broke a window and took the kids out.
City sheriff JP Smith commended the staff, saying: “Their tireless efforts have undoubtedly made a positive impact on the communities they serve.”