A case of attempted murder has been opened after a vehicle was struck with a concrete block on the part of the N2 highway, known as the “hell run”.
This is after a passenger was injured when the object was hurled at the moving vehicle she was in. The attack happened on Sunday, 13 July, before Borchards Quarry Road, next to Nyanga.
The woman and her husband were travelling to Cape Town International Airport from Somerset West when the object struck their vehicle’s passenger side. The victim sustained injuries in her face due to the shattered glass.
City of Cape Town councillor Emre Uygun said that at that moment, another vehicle allegedly also tried to force them off course.
“One more person was seriously injured on the notorious section of the N2 highway… Another vehicle attempted to force them off the road at the same time.”
He added that the victims had attempted to call the police’s 10111 emergency hotline, but he said those calls went unanswered.
Western Cape police spokesperson, Frederick van Wyk, said Nyanga police are now investigating the case.
“Investigations continue, no arrest as yet,” Van Wyk added.
Uygun said the “hell run” section of the N2 remains a high-risk zone, even two years after SANRAL’s monitoring systems (of the N2 and R300) recorded 200 crime-related incidents, including stone-throwing and armed robbery.
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In March 2023, a woman died after a rock shattered her car window in Nyanga, causing cardiac arrest. She and her family had been rerouted by Google Maps due to a road closure. In July that year, a 21-year-old student suffered a broken jaw when a rock was thrown through her window. In October, U.S. tourists were robbed at gunpoint in Philippi after a brick smashed their rental car window – they were en route to the airport. Then in November that year, a 55-year-old American tourist was shot in the face and robbed after being directed through Nyanga en route to Simon’s Town.
READ MORE: ‘I got shot in the face’ – American tourist’s horror ordeal in Nyanga
Councillor Uygun expressed frustration over safety failures.
“It is alarming that the CCTV cameras on this stretch of road are non-functional, and visible policing is clearly inadequate. Cameras could serve as a deterrent and assist in apprehending perpetrators.”
He further urged authorities to implement immediate safety measures along the route.
“SANRAL, the police and the Metro Police [must] implement comprehensive measures to ensure the safety of motorists, particularly on the N2 near the airport, to prevent such incidents.”
Uygun has called on other possible victims of crimes along that stretch of road to come forward to raise awareness on the safety risks.
