The town so dangerous Google to remove route after tourist shot in the face
A spike in attacks in tourists in a town in South Africa has forced Google to remove the route from its navigation maps. The tech giant plans to remove the route through Nyanga – one of South Africa’s most violent townships.
The area is close to Cape Town’s international airport, and arriving visitors to the country using the navigation system to find their way got their holidays off to a bad start when they were set up.
Since August, two arriving visitors were shot while travelling through the town – an American survived after being shot in the face in Nyanga, and in August a British man was shot dead while driving his hire car.
The surgeon had been re-routed through the town to avoid road closures, reports the Times.
Walter Fischel, 55, from Connecticut in the USA nearly died after he was rerouted through the township in his rental car. He said he realised Nyanga “was not the greatest”, but it was too late and he got caught up in traffic.
READ MORE: Urgent health warning as tourist hotspots struck by outbreak of deadly disease
Mr Fischel was approached by several men, shot in the face and despite trying to put up a fight, the attackers snatched the cash and drove off in his car.
Fischel told News24 website from hospital: “While I tried looking for help, I spat out a couple of my teeth and the bullet as well.”
When using Google maps, the app will give the driver different route options and often to avoid traffic on the N2 motorway, the app will take the driver through Nyanga – a hotspot for gangs and violent crime.
Don’t miss…
Killer to launch bid to reduce jail term for murdering Olivia Pratt-Korbel[LATEST]
Bright A-level girl placed in hiding after escaping county lines drugs gang[REVEAL]
The country constantly named world’s safest where nobody even dares drop litter[INSIGHT]
Professor Alistair Mokoena, Google’s South Africa director said the first priority for the company was to block Nyanga as a recommended route to avoid traffic.
Google has also announced it will put new security alerts in place on Maps to safely navigate the country.
- Support fearless journalism
- Read The Daily Express online, advert free
- Get super-fast page loading
Source: Read Full Article
