Two people have died and another is in hospital after they were apparently mauled by three dogs in Schaapkraal over the weekend.
The Rottweilers, which have since been taken away, were seen biting a woman in the early hours of Saturday morning.
Resident Riedewaan Sias and a friend who passed by tried to rescue her but they were overpowered by the large dogs.
Angry Schaapkraal residents went on a rampage and torched a farm.
A resident tells the Daily Voice: “As far as I understand, two bodies were found outside the farm and people assumed that it was the farmer’s dogs that killed them.
“The angry residents came and set everything alight, they torched all of the working areas.
“It was just mayhem, and the owner of the farm was in Clanwilliam and we couldn’t get hold of him. There were more than 50 people on the property, it was scary.”
The police said details surrounding the incident were being investigated.
“During the early hours of (Saturday) at around 3am, a 38-year-old male and a 39-year-old female were killed by dogs in Philippi,” spokesperson Colonel André Traut said.
“The dogs were taken away from the scene by the SPCA.”
He says Public Order Policing was called to control a riotous crowd.
According to the Weekend Argus, Riedewaan Sias was found lying on the road near the farm.
He was walking to the nearby Egoli informal settlement shortly after 3am with another man when they allegedly saw the dogs attack a woman.
The identity of the woman is unknown.
Sias’ partner of 17 years, Eleanor Jeftha, said she was still trying to come to terms with what had happened.