Burning truck on N12 near Daveyton causes highway closure

• A tanker has caught alight on the N12 highway near Daveyton in Gauteng.
• The incident has resulted in the closure of the highway.
• It is unclear if the incident is linked to an ongoing truck driver protest.

A truck caught alight on the N12 near Daveyton in Gauteng on Tuesday night.

Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) spokesperson Chief Superintendent Kelebogile Thepa confirmed the incident and said it led to the closure of the highway.

Traffic was diverted and the wreckage was still there on Wednesday morning.

Traffic was diverted on the N12 highway after a tanker caught alight on Tuesday evening.

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"The road is still closed due to the incident. The N12 direction east is closed as two lanes are affected. Motorists are advised to use alternative routes," she said.

Ekurhuleni EMS spokesperson William Ntuli said paramedics were called to the scene at around 19:30 on Tuesday.

There were no casualties, he said.

Gauteng police had not responded to News24 at the time of publication.

It is unclear whether the incident is related to ongoing protest action among truck drivers.

On Tuesday, the N3 was blocked near Harrismith as part of a national protest by truck drivers.

READ | 'The drivers are fed up' - Truckers' protest causes backed up traffic on N3 highway in Harrismith

Free State police spokesperson Brigadier Motantsi Makhele said that around 30 truck drivers had parked their trucks on the N3 and were demanding to see Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula. The truckers are demanding that freight companies refrain from employing foreign drivers.

The protest started on Sunday.

In the Eastern Cape, truck drivers were prevented from travelling on the N10 highway, outside Middelburg.

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