Canaan Mdletshe

Canaan Mdletshe

Residents of Quarry Road Heights outside Durban yesterday reached an amicable settlement with municipal authorities after police had fired shots and injured unarmed demonstrators in the area on Monday morning.

Eleven people, mostly women, were shot and wounded when police opened fire on a group of more than 200 people who were obstructing the construction of Inanda Road.

Six people were arrested.

The residents, all from a low-cost housing development project, were protesting against the construction of the road, which cuts through their yards.

They said 10 houses were already affected by the construction and that one was on the verge of collapsing.

Yesterday, an emergency meeting between the residents, the eThekwini municipality and the construction company yielded positive results.

It was decided the owner of the collapsing house would be relocated and her house rebuilt.

The construction company also agreed to keep residents informed about the development and to employ locals.

Local councillor Rabi Gobind confirmed that some houses would be relocated if the need arose.

Gobind said those who had been arrested had appeared in court and were freed after his intervention.