Police in Mbombela are searching for suspects who damaged essential infrastructure belonging to Transnet, which resulted in significant fuel loss on Thursday.
A spokesperson for police Colonel Donald Mdhluli says the incident was reported to local security who noticed an unknown liquid spraying at "Tau Farm".
He says upon further investigation a hole, estimated to be about four meters, was dug directly into the pipeline, resulting in a loss of petrol worth an estimated R800 000.
The Provincial Commissioner in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Manamela says people's lives were in grave danger as the fuel could have caught fire.
"Besides the loss incurred by Transnet, people's lives were placed in serious danger. Criminals should bear in mind that we are talking about fuel here, should it have happened that accidentally the land caught fire, we were going to lose a number of innocent lives, maybe including the suspects' relatives," warned the General.
