News 18:00

BULLETIN 2 January 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# One person is hospitalised following the Shelley Point Hotel fire

# ActionSA condemns the appeal against the load-shedding judgment

# And, tennis: Djokovic struggles with sore right wrist

# One person has been taken to hospital after collapsing as a fire engulfed parts of the Shelley Point Hotel and Spa in St Helena Bay on the West Coast. Saldanha Bay mayor André Truter informed News24 the blaze seemingly originated in one of the kitchens. Thirty firefighters had been deployed to contain the fire and prevent it from spreading to the surrounding golf estate. A helicopter has also been utilised to dump water on the flames.

# ActionSA has condemned the government and Eskom’s decision to seek leave to appeal a court judgment that exempted public institutions, including hospitals, schools, and police stations from load-shedding. The court had declared load-shedding as unconstitutional. ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba asserts that the government should prioritise protecting essential services and the most vulnerable instead of utilising taxpayers’ money to appeal the ruling:

# The DA in Johannesburg is demanding transparency and a comprehensive explanation regarding the Piotrans Business Rescue plans. Piotrans (Pie-joe-trans), a bus operating company for the Rea Vaya (Ria Waai-ja) Bus Rapid Transit system, has been placed under business rescue. The DA’s Tyrell Meyers says heads must roll at Piotrans, and the party will persist until accountability is established:

# Iran has hanged nine convicted drug traffickers in recent days. State media reported three were executed at a prison in the northwestern province of Ardabil on charges of buying and transporting heroin and opium. The other six were executed separately on charges of trafficking methamphetamine, heroin and cannabis. Iran lies on a major opium-smuggling route between Afghanistan and Europe and has one of the world’s highest rates of domestic opiate use. Figures cited by the United Nations’ Office on Drugs and Crime in 2021 suggest 2.8 million people in Iran have a drug problem.

# Tennis: Novak Djokovic led Serbia into the quarter-finals of the United Cup today despite struggling with a sore right wrist which required on-court treatment. The world number one dropped a set in grinding past the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka (Jie-rie Lehetchka) 6-1, 6-7, 6-1 and required several visits from the trainer. He did not take part in the deciding mixed doubles. It put Serbia into a last-eight clash with Australia tomorrow.

Stay tuned for more news………….