Empangeni: 12 Interesting Facts You Might Not Know

Empangeni is a town in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa. It’s located 157 kilometres (97.5 miles) North of Durban (the third largest city in South Africa).

There’s probably a lot that you don’t know about this city, but today my aim is to change that…

Here are 12 Interesting Facts You Might Not Know about Empangeni

1. Empangeni was founded in 1851 as a mission station by Norwegian missionaries. The mission was later moved to Eshowe but a magistracy was established here in 1894. Empangeni was a village in 1906. It was proclaimed as a township in 1931 and a town in 1960.

2. It’s the second-largest town in the Zululand District Municipality, after neighbouring Richards Bay (which is only 16 km from the town).

3. Empangeni’s 2023 population is now estimated at 66,209. In 2001, the population of Empangeni was 13,317. The city’s population has grown by 7.56% annually.

4. The name Empangeni, according to folklore, comes from the Zulu word ‘pangaed’, which means ‘grabbed’, and is thought to refer to the number of crocodile attacks on water bearers in the nearby eMpangeni stream.

5. It was one of the town severely damaged during the riots and subsequent looting that broke out in parts of South Africa during July 2021. Many businesses did not re-open following the carnage.

6. The main tourist attraction in the town is the Arts and Cultural History Museum which showcases exhibitions on traditional Zulu culture as well as the early days of the sugar cane industry.

7. South African musician Matthew Mole was born in the town in 1991.

8. During the 1980s, a serial killer by the name of Simon Mpungose spread terror amongst the residents of Empangeni through his violent murders. The 35-year-old perpetrator became known as the ‘Hammerman’ due to his modus operandi of breaking into homes at night and killing the occupants with a hammer, before stealing their belongings.

Following his arrest in the same year, Mpungose was brought to trial in November 1984. The court heard that he had carried out numerous violent robberies, attacking many people, but refrained from harming the children of his victims. During the trial, Mpungose expressed a desire to die, as he had faced hardships compounded by those who failed to comprehend his struggles.

In response to his crimes, the judge sentenced him to the death penalty by hanging. At this point, Mpungose threw his blue tracksuit into the public gallery, yelled, and threatened to expose himself to the court before being restrained with handcuffs. A year later, on Friday, 29 November 1985, he was executed in Pretoria.

9. Located on the outskirts of Empangeni, Ngwelezane is a township that boasts several influential and noteworthy individuals.

Among them are Senzo Mchunu, the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Mildred Oliphant, former Minister of Labour, the late Ben Ngubane, former Chairman of Eskom, Wendy Gumede, actress and film director, Mthandeni Mbambo, international actor, Muzi, international artist, Wiwi Gumede and Mthobisi Mtshali, social activists, and Mpendulo Mbulawa, a social entrepreneur.

10. The town is surrounded by sugarcane plantations and is an important agricultural hub in the region. It’s home to several industries, including a paper mill, a sugar mill, and a distillery.

11. The Enseleni Nature Reserve is about 13 km north of Empangeni and offers a 7 km (4.3 miles) hiking trail in amongst the local animal life, mostly zebra and impala, and a number of picnic spots.

12. The climate is sub-tropical with an average temperature of 28.4 °C (83,12° F) in summer and 14.5 °C (58,1° F) in Winter. The town is said, by local residents, to not have a real winter, as temperatures are seldom very low.

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