Publication
United we stand
NOT even the cold, miserably wet conditions could deter the supporters of the ‘Run/Walk for Her’ event who arrived with re in their hearts to send a strong message against gender-based violence. They came in numbers to Alkantstrand on Saturday,...
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Two learners hospitalised after Monday taxi fire in Empangeni
TWO schoolchildren were rushed to Life Empangeni Private Hospital with serious injuries after the taxi in which they were travelling caught fire on Monday morning. The incident occurred on Durnford Road, Empangeni just before 7.30am. A further 21...
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Every small step counts
AFTER a horrid Friday and before a rainy Sunday, the weather was calm and clear for the 20th annual Sanca/Zululand Observer Walk Away from Drugs event held from the Zululand Yacht Club grounds on Saturday. And while many may have been scared off by the...
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Joyride blues
A MAN believed to be a mechanic, his girlfriend and two accomplices were arrested after they were allegedly caught driving an RTI vehicle while under the in uence of alcohol in Jozini on Sunday night. The arrest was effected by the Road Traf c...
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Major investment at Mosvold Hospital as rural healthcare prioritised
THE KZN Department of Health has invested R359m into upgrades at Mosvold Hospital in Ingwavuma. Health MEC Nomagugu Simelane conducted an oversight visit on Friday, accompanied by uMkhanyakude District Mayor Siphile Mdaka. Simelane said this forms part...
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Business bites back
NOTORIOUS as one of the lthiest and most dangerous spaces in Richards Bay, the Dollar Drive area was transformed on Friday in a massive community-driven clean-up campaign. Tired of putting up with rampant petty crime and blatant littering, local...
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Municipality orders Council to rectify MM appointment
THE appointment of Dr Joshua Sibeko as the uMkhanyakude District Municipal Manager has been set aside. Last week, the Pietermaritzburg High Court ruled that the Council decision in April - which overlooked then acting municipal manager, Dr Siyabonga...
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Beach is blitzed
THE gale force winds that howled over the past week left considerable beach damage in their wake. Storm surges, crashing waves from an angry sea and high tides combined to leave a trail of destruction at Alkantstrand and further up to the northern...
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Four die in horror N2 crash
A HEAD-ON collision between a minibus taxi and a Hyundai H100 bakkie claimed the lives of four people in Mtubatuba on Sunday night. Transport and Human Settlement MEC, Siboniso Duma, said he received a report in the early hours of Monday from the Road...
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Beach tragedy
A TOUR to Richards Bay turned into tragedy for a sports group from Greytown, after one person went missing while swimming at Alkantstrand over the weekend. The 24-year-old man was last seen in the surf zone, appearing to have been caught in rip...
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Call for submissions for poetry competition
Bester, said, “Each year we are moved by the depth and honesty of the entries we receive. The AVBOB Poetry Library now contains close to 30 000 poems, and submitting new work has become an annual tradition for many poets nationwide. When the...
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Riding high!
IT was a great day for racegoers, and an even greater day for Zululand's creative talent on Saturday, when eSikhaleni fashion designer Dalisu Vumase took second place in the Hollywoodbets Young Designer Award. Vumase said the achievement meant...
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Volunteers to boost fight against lawbreakers as Empangeni SAPS in top 10 for KZN crime stats
IN a drive to involve communities in the ght against crime, 300 volunteers have been trained and deployed to community crime- ghting structures. This was announced by KZN Premier Thami Ntuli at the Crime Fighting Imbizo held at Umzuvukile sports...
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Smoother travel ahead
DELAYS in infrastructure projects continue to impact the city's residents, and municipal of cials and service providers must nd solutions to ensure projects are completed within set time frames. This was the message delivered by City of uMhlathuze...
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Storm tragedy
A MAN was crushed to death when a house collapsed during Thursday evening's storm in Mawudlu, outside eShowe. uMlalazi Mayor Queen Xulu, accompanied by her executive committee members, visited the family of the deceased, Mhlengi Mpungose (24) on...
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SCAN ME
Christo Botha’s immediate family appreciated the condolences and kind tributes paid by many: Waldo and Jacquline Ostreline (brother-inlaw and sister-in-law), Ronel van Wyngaard (ex-wife), Zane Ostreline (life partner), Elzaan Nel (daughter) and...
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Security service provider threatens legal action against city mayor
THE city’s security service provider has threatened to take legal action against the mayor, Cllr Xolani Ngwezi. This after the municipality last week issued a media statement accusing Freeman Security Services of failing to pay its employees. In a...
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Light aircraft makes emergency landing
IT was the quick action of a pilot that saved the lives of passengers aboard a light aircraft, which made an emergency landing near Richards Bay on Sunday afternoon. It is reported that the pilot landed on Long Beach, north of Richards Bay. According...
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Bail abandoned
GATHERING outside the Richards Bay Magistrate's Court on Monday, friends of murdered community member Sharon Uys called for no bail for the man accused of taking her life. Riaan Botha (43) appeared brie y in court on charges of murder and theft but...
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Home horror
A RICHARDS Bay woman, who was reported missing last week, was found dead in her bathroom on Thursday morning. A suspect was on Saturday arrested in connection with the death of Sharon Uys. Friends of Uys held a memorial bike ride on Sunday, from the...
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Most wanted suspect shot
A MAN believed to be involved in the murder of cross-border crime ghter, Sipho Juda Mthethwa and traditional healer James Mthembu, was shot and killed during a house robbery at Thengani area in the Emanguzi on Sunday night. The deceased, Si so...
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Substation upgrade to improve power supply
AN upgrade to Lokoza Intake Substation in Alton should conclude in April, generating approximately R2-million in additional revenue for the City of uMhlathuze. City of uMhlathuze’s Deputy City Manager for Electrical and Energy Services, Dolf Marais,...
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END OF THE ROAD FOR FUGITIVE
A MONTHS-long manhunt for a fugitive who escaped lawful custody in Richards Bay last year came to a bloody end last week. Fugitive Lungani Valentine Mkhize (25) was killed during a shoot-out with police in Verulam outside Durban on Thursday. Mkhize...
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Risen He is
THE annual Easter Sunrise Service at Alkantstrand on Sunday morning was a blessing of faith and fellowship as worshippers arrived in their hundreds to share in song, praise and communion to celebrate this important day on the Christian calendar. The...
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Plenty to do on land and sea
Rod Banwell and his crew on board Silhouette head out to sea on Saturday from the Zululand Yacht Club, on their way to take part in the 33rd annual Inhaca Island Yacht Race over the Easter weekend IT’S going to be an action-packed sporting and social...
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Coal dust issues back to the bad old days
COAL dust is choking streets, businesses, homes and lungs in Richards Bay, while coal trucks continue to cause road damage and traf c snarls. Monday morning was particularly bad, especially after weekend rain had turned the dust into slimy black...
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City intensifies efforts to combat illegal dumping
A NEW programme has been launched to strengthen the ght against illegal dumping in the City of uMhlathuze. Mayor Xolani Ngwezi launched the programme in eSikhawini, where large amounts of illegally dumped waste have been removed - some of it discarded...
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Scaly Saturday
THEY say everything happens in threes, and that certainly was the case with mamba catches on Saturday. Zululand snake handlers were kept busy, with no fewer than three mambas, black and green, captured in various parts of the region. Empangeni-based...
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Freak storm strike
FOUR people were struck by lightning in two separate incidents in Jozini when a storm hit the area over the weekend. uMkhanyakude District Mayor Siphile Mdaka said the victims were rushed to Shemula Clinic. This after heavy winds and rain resulted in...
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PRINCIPAL GUNNED DOWN
JUST hours after he had joined a mass prayer for N2 accident victims, KwaMbonambi Primary School principal, Jabulani Sibanyoni, was brutally murdered on Friday. He was reportedly shot and killed on the way to Mandlanzini, and his vehicle was set...
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Seven life terms for serial rapist
MTUNZINI High Court on Friday sentenced a rapist to seven life terms in prison plus an additional 155 years after he pleaded guilty to all charges against him. Muzikhona Mthethwa (33) was sentenced on Friday after he was found guilty on nine rape...
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RESCUE DASH
SOME 163 aspiring lifeguards applied for the City of uMhlathuze's Lifeguard Development Programme at Arboretum Swimming Pool on Saturday. Of these, 31 candidates met the minimum entry requirements of completing a 100-metre pool swim in under two...
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FAMILY TRAGEDY
MOTORISTS, particularly drivers of heavy-duty vehicles, are urged to exercise extra caution and patience on the roads to prevent further tragedy. The call was made by uMfolozi Mayor Xolani Bhengu on Monday during a visit to the bereaved Mnyango...
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Fight over hippo carcass ends in tragedy
A FIGHT to be the rst to cut meat from a euthanised snared hippo led to the deaths of two men, with a third still missing underwater, in the Mfolozi River on Saturday. The chaotic incident occurred in the stretch of river near Monzi outside St Lucia,...
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Road renaming call
ZULU royal prince Thuthukani Zulu of the KwaNxangiphilile house has proposed that Richards Bay’s John Ross highway be renamed in honour of his great-grandfather, King Cetshwayo kaMpande Zulu. The call was made on Thursday during a commemoration and...
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