The Volunteer Wildfire Services (VWS) has announced in the last hour that “it’s going to be another long night on the fire line as fresh firefighting crews move in to relieve tired, sore and thirsty brothers and sisters.” The NSRI has appealed to the public to please keep away from the fire regions. Access roads for […]

The fire, which started yesterday in Muizenberg, continued to rage through the night as firefighting efforts have been challenged by strong winds which rose up again at 2 am. Many roads are closed and smoke is visible over much of Cape Town. In a message to SAPeople in the early hours of the morning, local resident Rebecca Prinsloo said “I’m watching […]

A massive fire in Muizenberg has kept firefighters busy all day and into the night as gale force winds have been blowing, hampering their efforts. Half an hour ago SAPeople received this moving message from a local resident, Sandra Lexie Sono-Nkosi‎: “Wish I could go out and take a picture but the smoke is too much for me. Ou […]

As former Australian cricketer Glenn McGrath apologises for his “highly inappropriate” African hunting safari in which he allegedly shot an elephant, another rather inappropriate video involving an elephant has re-surfaced. The video – of a drunk man charging a wild elephant (yup, you read that right) – was uploaded by Kruger Sightings in 2013, and […]

UPDATE: ALL miners have been safely rescued and there are no injuries reported! President Jacob Zuma has expressed shock and concern at the news that a large number of mine workers are trapped underground at a Carletonville mine. In a statement tonight the President said he wishes the miners and their families strength during this […]

South Africa’s Leader of the Opposition, Mmusi Maimane, did not hold back in his verbal attack on President Jacob Zuma in Parliament today, saying what has been said around candlelit dinner tables, braais and in the media around the country since Thursday’s (somewhat failed) State of the Nation Address (SONA) in Cape Town. The DA […]

Tonight’s State of the Nation Address will be remembered for unfortunately being more like a circus than a parliamentary gathering. Many called it a “joke” and Redi Thlabi went so far as to tweet that it was  “like watching porn with your parents. #Embarrassing”. The evening began with an alleged deliberate jamming of the cellphone signal. […]

First we had loadshedding. Then the jokes. Now the musical videos… Ag Please Eskom – the joys of loadshedding Here’s a Loadshedding tribute song from Nikki Horn, aka TheNixter, whose previous South African-ised Christmas carols went viral during the festive season. Based on Jeremy Taylor’s ‘Ag Pleez Deddy’. Load Shedding Song 2015 – Hours Of Darkness […]

Democratic Alliance (DA) Parliamentary Leader Mmusi Maimane MP made the following statement regarding the current load shedding crisis this morning outside Chancellor House, the former law firm of Nelson Mandela and Oliver Tambo in downtown Johannesburg: “Democrats, today we are gathered outside Chancellor House, the site of South Africa’s first black-owned law-firm, opened in 1952 by Nelson Mandela […]

This morning we received a rather irate message from a Gauteng resident – Michael B.: “Where the hell are the lights? And now we have no water!” In fact in the past week we’ve received plenty of similar messages…Andrea in Durban was furious when she left work early “especially to get home in time to cook for […]

Tarquin Dennis, older brother of missing swimmer Tristan Dennis, bravely decided to swim in today’s 2015 aQuellé Midmar Mile to finish the event for his brother. The legendary Midmar Mile in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, kicked off to a good start yesterday but turned to heartbreak later in the day when Tristan did not finish his race. His friends, who had […]

André Brink, one of South Africa’s most distinguished writers, has passed away at the age of 79. Brink was on a flight from Amsterdam to Cape Town last night when he died. The acclaimed novelist had been on a trip to Belgium where he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Belgian Francophone Université Catholique de […]

If there’s one lesson to be learnt from the #MugabeFalls incident it’s that in this day and age, it’s a mistake to try and control your brand image. With social media as it is – once something’s out there, you can’t get it back. Had the Zimbabwe president not allegedly asked photographers to delete the shots of him tripping […]

There have been a range of responses from South Africans following the heartbreaking news of a young student who was allegedly raped with a broomstick by a group of fellow students – who videoed the incident – at a Northern Cape high school on Sunday. The victim was new to the school. And he was […]

A video shot outside a Home Affairs office in Durban on Wednesday has gone viral…and may just be the catalyst that makes some civil servants realise it’s time to improve their customer services! Before continuing it’s REALLY IMPORTANT to note that MANY of the Home Affairs offices in South Africa are brilliant! Here’s an example of one of many messages we regularly […]

South Africans have taken to social media to express their shock and heartbreak at the news that popular Top Billing presenter Simba Mhere, and his friend Kady Shay O’Bryan, have died in a car accident in the early hours of this morning. Simba’s father, who was also in the vehicle, has survived the accident. Photos have been […]

This morning began with a message from renowned South African writer Max du Preez on his Facebook page declaring he has “ended my association with the Independent Media Group and will no longer write a weekly column for its newspapers.” (Read the full transcription below.) In response to this and other recent media events, Gauteng businessman […]

Yesterday was declared a public holiday in Monaco as Princess Charlene (36) and Prince Albert (56) joyfully introduced their twins to the residents of the small, but luxurious, principality on the French Riviera. Church bells rang, a military band performed, and crowds – waving flags – clapped and cheered as the couple took to the Palace balcony, each […]

The story of the husky, Max, that was allegedly beaten to death in White River, after apparently attacking the neighbour’s goats, continues to dominate social media headlines, as support increases for justice to be served in this alleged case of animal cruelty, a tragedy that the NSPCA announced today was sadly “one of many” in […]

British photographer Richard Humphries, who recently won an award for his graphic photographic portrait of “South Africa’s Rhino War”, describes the poaching scenes he witnessed in the Kruger National Park as nothing less than a “full-on war”. Richard has a history with South Africa, having lived in the country, with his wife Jill, for three years from […]

It’s the busiest time of the year, but South Africans have been experiencing extreme power outages that wreak havoc on Christmas shopping…along with all the daily mundane things like watching the food go ‘vrot’ in the fridge! (This article was published in December 2014! Click here for an update on the Top 10 South African Loadshedding / Load […]

South African hostage Pierre Korkie, who was tragically killed in Yemen this weekend, was due to have been released today in time to spend Christmas with his family. Instead he passed away during a failed rescue attempt by American Special Forces in the early hours of yesterday morning. Gift of the Givers Foundation, who participated […]

It is with both hope and despair that we read the latest South African National Parks (SANParks) Press Release on Rhino Poaching in South Africa, and we know that the situation is no less bleak in other African countries. It’s never nice to be the prophet of doom, but really – hasn’t the time come […]

At first, the scene looks like another sensational sunset in South Africa blazing across the sky. But unfortunately this was a real fire burning on Elsies Peak today in Fish Hoek/Glencairn, Western Cape, South Africa. (See Update below.) Local professional photographer Robyn Gwilt – from RobynG Photography – took the dramatic set of photos on this […]

by Magnus Heysteck If anyone reading this column still had any lingering hopes that South Africa is not hurtling towards being a failed state, then I’m sure these hopes were finally dashed by what happened in Parliament on the evening of November 13 2014. When the president of a country, according to some reports, starts sending […]