Heatonville farmers push through road chaos as cane season peaks

Farmers and motorists battle dangerous road conditions and costly delays during peak cane season

May 10, 2025

Tracey Turner 2 minutes read

Passing the old Heatonville church and club to the railway line T-junction is badly potholed

With roughly 110 000 tonnes of sugar cane in peak season, the timing for a major road closure could not be worse for Heatonville farmers.

A massive pothole forced a road closure on Monday, 5 May — just as Felixton Mill reopened for sugar cane deliveries on Wednesday.

The crater located about 3km after Empangeni Milling on Nutman’s Hill – the first hill towards Heatonville – has been forcing all traffic onto a narrow gravel detour road.

The Nutman’s Hill road was so badly damaged that Ikhwezi Bus Service failed to send out buses on Monday, with five damaged from the crater, and others seen stranded and leaking oil from their sumps.

As of Wednesday, contractors began fixing the road.

“Sadly, it took several buses and trucks getting broken, stuck, and accidents for them to do something,” said Heatonville resident Shelley Hall.

The gravelly detour towards Heatonville that motorists are forced to use while Nutman’s Hill is closed
Photos: Supplied

Hall described the roads towards her home as resembling more of the moon than a road.

“When it rains, the road turns to slippery slush, and floods. Now, we have to pick which holes and rocks to hit as the car rocks back and forth,” she said.

“It’s only the first hill coming into Heatonville that is getting attention. Several other sections are rapidly deteriorating to the same impassable state and no hope of repairs in sight,” she said.

The greater problem lies larger than the potholes – the Heatonville road, which stretches to Ulundi, has seen contractors walking off jobs, with some sections outstanding since 2016.

“I spoke to the overseer of all the contractors and he said there is no light at the end of the tunnel and no new contractors appointed,” said Wilhelm Harris, Heatonville cane farmer.

“Apparently, there is not even diesel for the graders.”

Harris said residents and farmers are thinking of ways to express their concerns and put pressure on contractors.

As of Friday afternoon, the road over Nutman’s Hill remained closed.

Thomas Hall, another Heatonville farmer, said he has been using the treacherous detour to deliver cane, making use of the sunny weather, as when it rains, it will be impossible on the detoured road.

“I only managed my first haul to the mill on Thursday. Now, [Friday afternoon] I am on my way to my fourth.”

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