| 27 July 2005 |
| Minibus shot at |
| By Lynette Louw |
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Six staff members of Riviera Cash & Carry in Malelane had a narrow escape when two vehicles tried to force them off the road and opened fire on their vehicle last week.
According to Feroz Guman, co-owner of Riviera Cash & Carry, they have been transporting staff members who live in Barberton to and from work for the last 13 years and this is the first time something like this has happened. “We have no idea who the culprits were and what the aim of the attack was,” an upset Guman said when speaking to Barberton Times.
According to the driver of the Toyota Hi-Ace, who does not want his name mentioned, he was transporting the staff home after work. They were close to Crystal Stream in the vicinity of the Sheba Siding turnoff at approximate 17:00, when a white Citi Golf in front of them tried to slow them down and would not allow the Hi-Ace to pass.
Then a silver Toyota Corolla pulled up next to them and tried to push them off the road.
The Golf eventually accelerated away and the Corolla passed them and stopped in the middle of the road. Two men jumped out and opened fire on them.
The driver braked and immediately started to reverse. As the two men jumped back into the Corolla he passed them and sped away. The attackers, caught off guard, did not chase them.
The Hi-Ace pulled off into Jan Nel’s farm at Eureka Siding and jumped out of the Hi-Ace in an attempt to get away.
A security guard that was on duty informed Nel of the incident and he immediately phoned the Lows Creek Police Station. They in turn informed him that he should phone Barberton as the incident happened in the Barberton jurisdiction and they would not send someone out to the scene.
Meanwhile Guman was informed of what happened and he phoned Gerhard Bessenger of SuperPro and three emergency vehicles were on the scene within 40 minutes.
Fortunately no one was badly injured and the passengers were taken to hospital for treatment of shock and minor injuries sustained while jumping out of the vehicle in their rush to escape.
According to Jan Nel he phoned the Barberton Police Station and could not at first get any reaction out of them. Eventually after an hour and a half a vehicle with two constables arrived on the scene.
“I’ve been having this problem for many years as my farm is between the two stations’ jurisdiction,” Nel said.
On making enquiries at the Barberton Police Station, Snr Sup Leah Banda was not aware of the situation and said that she would definitely look into the matter.
“No police station that is called to assist in any police matter can pull up their shoulders and say it is not in their jurisdiction. They should react to any call of distress,” she said.
She said that the docket was sent to the Lows Creek Police Station for investigation.
Barberton Times tried to establish why the Lows Creek police did not go out to the scene.
According to Capt. Msithle he was on duty when the call was received and due to the fact that they could not establish where the incident took place they referred the caller to Barberton.
The station commander Insp. Sithole was on leave and nobody could confirm if they had received the docket or were investigating the incident.
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The Gerbera association was honoured with various medals at the annual “Bundes Garten Schaw” that was held in Munich recently.
The association was invited to do Barberton daisy exhibits at the prestigious show that is held every second year in Germany.
At the prize giving it was awarded three gold, three silver and two bronze medals in different display categories. The entire display walked away with a gold medal and certificate.
According to Volkmar Seifert, president of the Gerbera Association South Africa, the show was one of the biggest garden shows in Europe and is a showpiece for landscapers in Germany.
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Peter Ambrosias, honorary chairman of the Gerbera association, at the display in Munich. |
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Three golden oldies are now combined into one route.
“Golden Diggers’ Drive”, which links Barberton, Kaapsehoop and Pilgrim’s Rest, was officially launched on Thursday, July 21 by William Lubisi, MEC for economic development and planning, at Kaapsehoop.
The new route was initiated by the organizers of the 2005 World Gold Panning Championships to be hosted in Pilgrim’s Rest during September and will become a legacy of this event.
The route will take tourists from Barberton, where the legend of “barmaid” Cockney Liz lives on, via Kaapsehoop, once known as Duiwelskantoor and on to Pilgrim’s Rest, home of Wheelbarrow Patterson and Honest John.
Many weird, wild and wonderful legends are still very much alive in the mountains and valleys on “Gold Diggers Drive”, situated in an area invaded during the gold rush era by people with colourful names such as Charlie Tinke, Yankee Dan, Harry the Sailor and Canada Joe.
Apart from legends and stories, there are many interesting facts to be discovered. Some of the first signs of life on earth and the oldest gold on earth are to be found in the Barberton mountains.
Stone artifacts also hint that a rather large population used to live in this area.
This is the world where many stories are told about the beautiful, the brace and the ugly – Cockney Liz, Jock of the Bushveld and the “Queen of Sheba”.
Here’s a few useful tips when traveling this route:
When unexpectedly encountering a cathedral – you’re in the Sheba mine, the richest the world has ever seen. When you hear the words “duiwelskantoor” whispered in the wind, you know you have arrived in Kaapsehoop and when you hear “the pilgrim is at rest… at rest… at rest…” echoing through the hills and valleys, you know you have arrived at Pilgrim’s Rest – host town of the 2005 World Gold Panning Championships.
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Enquiries: Information bureau on 013-712-2121.
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