Huguenot Tunnel in Cape Town Closed After Bus Fire Causes Structural Damage

• The Huguenot Tunnel in Cape Town was forced to close on Saturday morning, 4 October 2025, for a full assessment
• This comes after a bus that travelled through the tunnel caught fire, resulting in severe structural damage
• It is alleged that the bus fire was caused by an electrical fault, forcing the tunnel to close

A devastating bus fire, caused by an electrical fault, has forced the Huguenot Tunnel in Cape Town to close on Saturday morning, 4 October 2025.

What caused the bus fire?

It is alleged that the fire was caused by an electrical fault in the bus. The Drakenstein municipality’s firefighters, along with the tunnel’s fire team, brought the blaze under control. The municipality confirmed that all passengers were safely evacuated, although one person suffered minor injuries and was taken to the hospital.

The Breede Valley Municipality said the scene has been cleared, but the tunnel sustained structural damage and will remain closed until engineers complete a full assessment. The tunnel, an important connection between Paarl and Worcester along the N1 route from Cape Town to the interior, has prompted authorities to advise motorists to use alternative routes until it reopens.

What did South Africans say?

Social media users shared their opinions regarding the bus fire.

@nyambenis said:

"So, for 1400km it decides to explode on that 3.9km stretch, effectively cutting off CPT."

@Maliqo said:

"City of Cape Town can't even provide food and water for people stucked there. People are hungry. They must open the overhead road now. More than 5 hours waiting there."

@Yondizee said:

"Last week it was a truck with drugs. Hayyy this tunnel suddenly."

@ComradeCadre said:

"They are destroying infrastructures. They want construction tenders. Next is a petrol tanker that's going to catch fire."

@MHlekiso said:

"It's Badela transport, There was no passengers inside the bus?"

@SelloTsebe said:

"We want to see that seconds from disaster."

Bus fires in 2025

An investigation has been launched into a fire that destroyed three Greyhound buses in Boksburg near OR Tambo International Airport. Disaster and Emergency Management Services (DEMS) teams received a distress call on Sunday, 17 August 2025, and found that three buses and a trailer were on fire.

An unknown amount of assailants torched 50 Putco buses in four depots in Mpumalanga on the evening of 27 January 2025. South Africans suspected that sabotage was behind the motive. Two employees were injured during an attack in which armed men dressed in black stormed the depots in Moloto, Siyabuswa, Vaalbank and Wolvekraal.

A bus caught fire on the R537 Moloto Road on 21 May 2021, which resulted in six people tragically losing their lives. 57 other people were injured in the blaze. Tshwane Emergency Services were able to eventually extinguish the fire. When the firefighters arrived on the scene, they learned that 14 patients needed treatment, and other patients had been rushed to the hospital by private ambulances.

Sol Phenduka blames politicians in R19 million drug bust near Huguenot Tunnel

In a previous article, Briefly News reported that South African radio star Sol Phenduka has reacted to a R19 million drug bust which happened on Friday, 3 October 2025. A foreign national was nabbed for the arrest as he was travelling from Johannesburg to Cape Town. Sol Phenduka has pointed fingers at politicians for this recent worrying occurrence.

A Nigerian truck driver was caught red-handed transporting drugs worth R19 million. The bust happened at a location near the Huguenot Tunnel, close to Cape Town. It is said that the 44-year-old foreign national was taken into custody after the vehicle was stopped during a raid.

Source: Briefly News