DA on a high to repair flagpole
Intrepid councillor sets selfie record in Bay
INTREPID Bay councillor Dean Biddulph has taken oversight of a municipal repair job to what could arguably be the highest level, and simultaneously bagged an unofficial record for the highest selfie ever taken in the metro.
Albeit far from having his head in the clouds, the Nelson Mandela Bay Ward 2 councillor and spokesman for the DA caucus in the city came pretty close yesterday when he and repairmen were hoisted by crane to the top of the 70m-high flagpole on the Donkin Reserve.
Their mission was to repair the red-flashing aircraft warning light, damaged steel housing and the cable which helps to hoist, lower and fly the massive South African flag.
At 12m x 8m in size, the flag is the biggest South African flag in the world. Back down on earth after his lofty experience, which included snapping a high-quality selfie, Biddulph said counter weights used in the hoisting and lowering operations of the flag had gone missing weeks ago.
“When the weights were taken, the cable shot up and caused dam- age to the light, cable and steel housing at the top of the pole,” he said.
“The flag could not be raised as a result.
“We had to wait for good weather conditions and a crane was brought in to assist in effecting the repairs. “The repair is now complete.” Biddulph, who revealed that the raising and lowering of the flag each day was done by mem- bers of the historic army regiment, Prince Alfred’s Guards, said the cost of the repairs would be borne by the Mandela Bay Development Agency, which oversees the various installations at the Donkin Reserve.
“The flag is an important icon for Nelson Mandela Bay and, as a national symbol we are proud of, we need to make sure that it is all in working order,” he said.
The huge flag, which has been compared to the size of a tennis court, can be seen for kilometres around Port Elizabeth and even as far as the Bay’s beachfront.
The flagpole is the second highest in Africa and the installation as a whole forms a centrepiece of the city’s Route 67 tourism trail.
Route 67, along with the flag, pays tribute to Nelson Mandela’s 67 years’ service to South Africa.
Biddulph said the DA would be launching its mayoral campaign around its candidate, Athol Trollip, at the Donkin Reserve between 11am and 2pm on Saturday.
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The flag is an important icon
for Nelson Mandela Bay