Not many good stories come out of interactions between taxi association security guards and truck drivers, but Saturday afternoon gave us one worth talking about.
A truck driver was saved from armed robbers in broad daylight on the N2 near Mtubatuba after his truck broke down and he was forced to stop at a lay-by.
Unfortunately, this stretch of road is a hotspot for crime. If you stop anywhere between Richards Bay and Itshelejuba Hospital outside Pongola, chances are high you’ll become another crime statistic — robbed of your belongings, your diesel, your tyres, or in the worst cases, your life.
The trucker, driving a Zimbabwean-registered Shacman gas tanker, recorded the ordeal on video. In the footage, the thieves — armed with a panga — are seen siphoning diesel straight from his truck in broad daylight. When he tries to approach, one of the robbers chases him away with the panga.
Desperate, the driver runs onto the road to flag down passing vehicles, but one after the other they drive past, ignoring his pleas for help. Then, his luck changes — taxi association security guards arrive on the scene.
Read | Two in Custody After Violent Truck Hijacking and R200,000 Diesel Robbery
Armed with rifles, they quickly outnumber and outgun the robbers, who abandon the stolen diesel and disappear into the bushes.
SA Trucker extends a big salute to these heroes for stepping in when it mattered most. If more moments like this happen, maybe one day truckers and taxi security will see each other as allies on these dangerous South African highways — especially on the notorious N2.
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