Looking back on South Coast history: November 12 to 18
It was a week of murder and mayhem, with only a golf tournament to lighten the news.
Ordinary motorists were inconvenienced by the problems of the taxi industry.
November 12
1993
“Hundreds of motorists travelling along the N2 towards Harding yesterday, were forced to turn back when an estimated 100 taxis blocked the road for more than seven hours. And on Tuesday about 50 taxis blocked the main South Coast road near Sunwich Port for an hour, causing a massive traffic jam which stretched to Port Shepstone. The drivers were protesting against the continuing attacks on drivers and commuters in the Izingolweni, Murchison and Bhobhoyi areas.”
And… “Violence on the South Coast has risen sharply in the past month, with Murchison and Bhobhoyi being declared flashpoints.”
1999
“The South Coast community is aghast at the grisly discovery of the bodies of Rosa and Clem Baiocchi in a deep grave near their home. A man employed by the Baiocchi family has been arrested.”
And the fight to save a landmark was lost. “Margate Round Table, which has occupied its world-renowned clubhouse on the Margate North beachfront for at least 27 years, has been given three months’ notice to vacate it.”
November 13
1992
“Sporadic incidents of violence in troubled Lower South coast townships have claimed the lives of at least 15 people during October.”
November 14
1997
“Paddock farmers nab murder suspect,” and the Bullslingers Club turned 30 years old.
November 15
1991
“In the past two years the communities served by the Port Shepstone-based Ziphakamise self-help organisation have been ravaged by violent conflict. Members had seen death and destruction, intimidation and fear in such horrifying proportions that there were no words to describe them, said the chairman, Rev John Harrison, when he delivered his report at the Ziphakamise annual general meeting. ‘Homes are being destroyed at such a rate that it is impossible to cope any longer. Our infrastructure seems to be inadequate for the flood of violence which has now hit the South Coast,’ he said.”
And… “A copper cable thief blacked out Port Shepstone for about four-and-a-half hours last Monday night when he tried to hacksaw through a live 11kva cable near the Mbango bridge on the Harding road out of Port Shepstone. The remains of the hacksaw were found, but not the thief.”
1996
“Four taxi officials narrowly escaped death when they were caught in the crossfire between rival taxi operators.”
And one of Eskom’s two transformers at the Oribi sub-station in Marburg blew up and burned out.
November 17
1995
“A man was stabbed in the back for no apparent reason while he was walking in Port Shepstone.”
2000
“As a foot-and-mouth cordon was thrown around KwaZulu-Natal this week, concerned farmers vowed to do all they could to contain the outbreak.”
Meanwhile the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health reassured visitors that there was no danger of them catching cholera, a discarded shad hook killed an albatross and a 14-year-old boy was convicted of armed robbery.
November 18
1994
Margate Surf Lifesaving Club received official notice from the Margate Council that it would lose its clubhouse in January.
But … “Saturday’s golf tournament at Margate Country Club saw 135 players turn out for the annual Boertjies vs Souties competition. In the final analysis the collective scores were Boertjies 1335 Stableford points and Souties 1335 points – a tie for the first time in the history of the competition.”
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