Police uncover nest of Stowaways

TERRY HUTSON
A DISUSED building near the Maydon Wharf area of Durban Harbour was badly burnt in the early hours of Thursday (May 11) when police disturbed a nest of stowaways hiding in the building’s rafters. The police entered the building in pursuit of a suspected thief after he robbed a boat nearby. As they entered the building they came under fire from lighted missiles thrown by an estimated 40 or more people who were hiding in the rafters and using the building for shelter. In the process the former I&J building caught fire and amidst all the confusion some of the vagrants managed to escape. However 28 men, all thought to be stowaways from East Africa, were arrested and charged and police and immigration officials will now investigate how they came to be in Durban. A quantity of stolen property was also recovered, some of it thought to have come from ships in the harbour. The incident again raises the question of poor security along Maydon Wharf, where booms that were erected shortly after the imposition of the ISPS code two years ago are now mostly broken or missing. With the ongoing security strike these entrances remain unguarded but even when security was present pedestrian traffic was able to walk in or out with impunity, whereas anyone arriving by vehicle became subject to a permit request. Durban has experienced a number of stowaway incidents in recent months and the supposed tighter security surrounding the port has made little difference to this traffic.