UNCONFIRMED reports are now coming through of people being robbed in smash and grab incidents while sitting in traffic on roads leading to Durban North.

This follows the chaos caused by the hundreds of protesters on roads surrounding the Umgeni Business Park area.

Traffic along the N2 and North Coast Road has been severely congested.

KwaZulu-Natal police spokesperson, Captain Thulani Zwane, is quoted as saying that around 400 people are involved in the protests, which have seen residents burning tyres and blockading roads since the early hours of the morning.

The riots were triggered by a lack of service delivery and failed government promises, said local ward councillor, Deochand Ganesh.