An armed ambush of 12 people along the famous Dusi canoe marathon route on New Year's eve has sparked new safety fears for the big race.
Although extensive and costly security measures are in place for the 1 700 entrants in the three-day marathon from January 18 to 20, training canoeists have been alerted via e-mail to the dangers of training along the route's Molweni Valley, just below the Inanda Dam wall.
The well-executed hold-up at lunchtime last Sunday was followed by the robbery of 20-year-old canoeist Hank McGregor on Wednesday by panga-wielding thieves.
During last year's marathon two lonely paddlers at the end of the pack were robbed of their watches in the same area and a car was also broken into.
The traumatised victims of the New Year's eve ambush, including a 28-year-old paraplegic, as well as one of the sponsors of this year's race, have now made calls for the army to patrol the no-go zone before and during the Dusi.
"We're lucky to be alive. Our biggest relief is that nobody was shot or raped. We'll never in our lives go into that area again, but we're really worried about the Dusi participants," said 31-year-old Terry Havemann from Westville.
The clothing company owner, his girlfriend Ursula Smith, his five-year-old son and nine friends who were picnicking at the river were surrounded by four men armed with Z88 police-issue weapons. They were stripped of their firearms, jewellery, cellphones and even clothing. The robbers escaped in Havemann's Toyota Raider, but not before taking the keys to his friend's Landrover. A second Landrover was "cleaned out", but left in the valley.
"It all happened so quickly. One minute these guys were walking out of the bush saying they had come to swim, the next we had guns at our heads. When they herded us into a circle and made us lie down, we thought we were going to be shot," said Havemann, who with Smith, will meet with a trauma counsellor on Monday.
"The concept of 'safety in numbers' means nothing. It's hunting season out there and the public need to be warned," he said.
Dusi spokesman Ray de Vries described the valley as a "hot spot" and said paddlers had been warned via e-mail to avoid the area this year when training.
He said South Africa had a crime problem and the Dusi route was no exception.
"But a lot of money has been spent on security and the valley will certainly be a safer place during the race," he said.
Some 140 policemen and 200 bikers will bolster security, in addition to divers, rescue helicopters as well as members of the Durban Disaster Management team.
Dusi security and safety officer Derek Howe said a designated SAPS patrol in the area was on the lookout for gangs, but that it was a large area to police.
"The police cannot be everywhere all the time. It has always been a sensitive area, even during the race," Howe said.
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