#ERSchallenge Donald Moatshe - Centrum® Guardians 2014

On Thursday, 31 July 2014, an epic showdown took place between celebrities, fire fighters and paramedics at the SA Emergency Care training facility in Eastern Johannesburg. It was hosted by Ruda Landman, the Centrum® Guardian Project brand ambassador, Paul Rotherham, the MC, and Johan Pieterse, the Media and Liaison Spokesperson for the City of Tshwane. To showcase their training and physical abilities, some of the top Gauteng fire fighters and paramedics challenged well-known personalities to a competition which saw the two groups race each other through an obstacle course made up of fire fighting and rescue challenges that could be encountered in a fire incident.

The Emergency and Rescues Services (ERS) team won overall on the day. This remarkable achievement proves once again that our ERS is ranked as one of the best in the world. As a result of the types of incidents that they deal with every day, their experience is incomparable to their colleagues in most first world countries. The winning team included representatives from Johannesburg (Freddy Morukhu), Ekurhuleni (Thabo Mbengwana, Lucky Myeza, David Vilane, Enie Molaetsedi and Elton Molaetsedi), Tshwane (Gordon Kühn), Midvaal (Tertius Engelbrecht and Johannes Moreba) and Lanseria (Rudi Swanepoel and Gary Kaufman) as well as Netcare 911 (Deon Swart), ER24 (Klaus Milbert) and Gauteng Emergency Medical Services (Manie Gouws – the current course record holder).

The celebrity team contestants were Hlubi Mboya, Maps Maponyane, Letshego Zulu, Mika Stefano, Mdu “Suffocate” Mabaso, Mike Sharman, Donald, Marco Broccardo, Simba Mhere, Cyprian Ndlovu and Shelton Forbez.

Fastest Male ERS was Tertius Engelbrecht with a time of 2:32. Simba Mhere was the Fastest Male Celeb with a time of 2:46. Enie Molaetsedi was the Fastest Female ERS with a time of 6:42. Hlubi Mboya achieved the Fastest Female Celeb time of 6:42.

The challenge is known as the ‘toughest two minutes in sport”. Participants wore PPE (personal protective equipment) including breathing apparatus, all of which weighs over 23kgs in total.

During July, August and September 2014, the public can help to save life when purchasing any Centrum® product. For every pack of Centrum® sold, Centrum® will contribute funding towards specialised training for the ERS. Centrum® will consult with the role players in the industry to identify the specialised training needs for the various disciplines.

Training helps to avert and in some cases, minimise disasters. Training not only enhances the lives of the ERS personnel who benefit from improved knowledge and additional skills, but ultimately the community in which the ERS operate will also benefit. Over the past three years, the Centrum® Guardian Project has provided nearly R2 million worth of training, thanks to willing and generous sponsors.