A City of Johannesburg official was attacked by a mob while responding to a structural collapse call in Alexandra on Friday.

“While the disaster management official was rushing to the incident‚ he was attacked by a mob that fired shots at his car for no apparent reason. A bullet struck the right side of his car‚ missing the official by inches‚ but he managed to escape unharmed‚” said the city’s member of the mayoral committee for safety‚ Michael Sun.

“The senseless and criminal attacks on our public safety officers [are] becoming prevalent‚ and we will not tolerate [them]. The selfish and cowardly criminals will attack firefighters‚ paramedics and now disaster management officials‚ so [that] they can conduct their criminal activities undisturbed.”

Sun urged members of the public to come forward and help identify the culprits‚ adding that “the community simply cannot harbour these criminals to their own detriment.” He said disaster management has been inundated with calls for assistance from residents whose homes get burnt down or flooded after flash floods.

“In November alone‚ the unit responded to 18 incidents and provided relief in the form of food parcels‚ blankets and clothes to affected families‚” Sun revealed.

“While we urge our officers to be vigilant at all times‚ it is only when we work together that we can rid our communities of these evil characters. I therefore call on all our residents to help in keeping our officers safe when [they are] responding to emergency calls.”