Durban buses set alight

At least 19 buses belonging to Durban’s troubled municipal bus service were set alight in the early hours of Friday morning, KwaZulu-Natal police said.

Constable Siwe Nxumalo said the buses operated under licence by Remant Alton - whose drivers are on an illegal strike - were set alight at the company’s Ntuzuma depot shortly after 4am.

"A security guard on duty told police he heard a bang, and when he checked he saw the buses on fire," she said. The buses were completely gutted.

"No arrests have been made. We don’t know who could have done this," she said.

Remant Alton bus drivers embarked on illegal protest action two weeks ago, leading to the dismissal of nearly 1000 employees earlier this week.

The workers were demanding that they be employed by the eThekwini Municipality as they claimed Remant Alton had financial mismanagement problems.

Nxumalo said police could not confirm whether the arson attack was linked to the ongoing strike.

Superintendent Vincent Mdunge said initial investigations revealed that the buses were petrol-bombed by "a number of suspects".

Police believed damage to the buses was estimated at R35 million.