N3 reopened following morning of looting, arson and protest

The violent protests that closed the Mooi River toll plaza route on one of the busiest weekends of the year have been contained, police said on Monday.

Hundreds of motorists returning home after the Easter long weekend were delayed since dawn as a protest started by truckers over a wage dispute turned sour.

It is believed that while the truckers were protesting, community members from a nearby informal settlement started looting and burning the trucks. Sporadic protests had been reported from 5am onwards.

Police Minister Bheki Cele, who was in KwaZulu-Natal for the Easter weekend, rushed to the scene when he was made aware of the chaos, said his spokesperson, Nonkululeko Phokane.

“Police Minister Bheki Cele together with KZN police management has urgently attended to the Mooi River protest. This follows reports of looting and major traffic delay caused by hundreds of protesters from the nearby settlement who are blocking the N3 northbound and southbound R103 and R62 near Mooi River toll plaza; which resulted in chaos and disorder on the national road this morning,” said Phokane.

“A joint operations committee has been set up and the minister is currently in that meeting,” said Phokane.

“Public Order Policing have been deployed in the area and have managed to clear the blockages,” she said.

South African Police Service KZN spokesperson Colonel Thembeka Mbhele, said the N3 was open by 11am, but could not confirm if any arrests had been made.

KwaZulu-Natal transport MEC, Mxolisi Kaunda, said it was important to get the protesting truckers to “engage” with stakeholders so that disruptions to the economy were averted.

The Mooi River N3 toll plaza is one of the busiest in the country, linking KwaZulu-Natal’s two major seaports with most of the hinterland such as the country’s economic hub of Gauteng, including SADC countries. – African News Agency (ANA)

Earlier:

At about 4.30am on Monday morning a band of protesters invaded the N3 near the Mooi Toll Plaza.

Authorities confirmed by 10am that the road was reopened going towards Gauteng. However, the southbound route remained closed.

Motorists have been asked to remain patient after massive traffic jams built up.

They have advised that the situation remains tense and motorists should try to steer clear of protesters and not “antagonise them”.

In a statement, the police said that Police Minister Bheki Cele together with KZN police management “has urgently attended to the Mooiriver Protest. This follows reports of looting and major traffic delay caused by hundreds of protesters, from the nearby settlement who are blocking the N3 northbound and southbound, R103 and R62 near Mooiriver toll plaza; which resulted in chaos and disorder on the national road this morning.

“Police operations are already underway to manage the chaotic situation in Mooiriver. The Public Order Unit of the SAPS is already on site.”

Earlier:

The angry protesters/community members set fire to a passing truck. There have been reports that the nearby Greytown community got involved and have been looting stranded vehicles, particularly a Spar truck.

Watch the looting below.

At the moment it is unclear what the protest action is about, though government says there is a dispute between truck drivers and at least one trucking company.

“Please be warned that roads around Mooi River is closed and completely inaccessible. Protesters at Mooi River toll gate. The R62, R103 and the N3 north and south bound is closed,” said a police tweet.

The Road Traffic Management Corporation has said it’s not yet ready to announce the opening of the road.

N3 Toll Concession, the company responsible for the road between Durban and Johannesburg, said: “Total road closure. Please delay your trips. We urge all drivers to be extremely cautious”.

There are already long queues of cars on the road, leaving motorists hugely frustrated.

Please avoid it if possible.

KZN MEC for transport Mxolisi Kaunda said on Monday morning that the alternative road, the R103, has also been shut, so Kaunda told drivers to delay their journeys for the moment while they engaged with truck drivers and companies to resolve the situation.

Con Roux of the N3 Toll Concession has said that public order police are on the scene to try to restore order but could not say how long it would take before the route was reopened.