Pretoria - Police in Pretoria had their hands full on Thursday morning as they battled hundreds of Gomora informal settlement residents on the edges of Hercules, west of Pretoria.
The informal settlement residents have been on the rampage since around midnight, burning electricity poles, blocking off roads with logs and tyres, and setting off several fires.
Some residents of Hercules complained that the protesters were throwing stones into their yards, smashing windows and tearing down electric fencing.
"I have been standing out here since 2am. They were here to do damage. Look, we don't have electricity now because they set fire to the pole. They have pulled down my electric wire," said one home owner who asked not to be identified.
Before 10am, more police vehicles were arriving at the scene. Public order police officers had fired several rubber bullets into the crowd, and also used teargas. A small police aircraft was hovering over the protests.