News Bulletin of 4 January 2026, 12pm

Pretoria Ave & Katherine St Intersection Nears Completion
The Johannesburg Roads Agency has confirmed the final phase of work at the busy intersection of Pretoria Avenue and Katherine Street in Sandown. With surface laying complete, crews are now focusing on tarring, road markings, and pedestrian paving. Weather permitting, the upgraded intersection should be ready this year, improving traffic flow in Sandton's business district. JRA clarified that the work was part of planned reinstatement following essential water repairs by Johannesburg Water last year, not due to a road collapse.
Sandton and Gauteng
Brescia House Athlete Shines Overseas
Brescia House School learner Grace Prince represented South Africa at the Orange Cup Lifesaving Championships in Rotterdam. This comes after being selected for Lifesaving SA’s President’s Team. Competing at the Zwemcentrum, she raced in nine events against top international athletes. Prince achieved a seventh-place finish in the 100m Manikin Tow with Fins and helped her relay team come within seconds of breaking a national record. She also took part in five individual events, approaching the competition with determination, humility, and pride in representing her country.
South Africa
Ostrich Goes for a Swim
A video shared by Kruger Magazine has gone viral, showing an ostrich calmly paddling in a pool at Unyati Safari Lodge. With its long legs and neck, the bird seemed completely at ease, treating the swim like part of its daily routine. Social media users were divided—some worried the ostrich was trapped, while others were simply entertained and kept replaying the clip. Johan Strauss and Rochelle Moolman from Unyati Safari Lodge later confirmed that the swim was completely intentional, not an accident. The lodge later shared another video showing the same ostrich calmly climbing out of the pool using the steps.
South Africa
Financial Indicators
Your financial indicators for this hour:

The Rand is trading at 16.48 to the US Dollar, 22.18 to the British Pound, and 0.00 to the Euro.

Gold is trading at 0.00 dollars a fine ounce, Brent Crude Oil is at Error per barrel, and a Bitcoin will set you back 91,316.00.
Dog Joins Monks on Peace Walk
An abandoned dog named Aloka has become a loyal companion to a group of Buddhist monks on their mission to spread peace and unity. The Indian Pariah breed first joined the monks during a 112-day peace walk in India and has stayed with them ever since. Now based in Fort Worth, Texas, Aloka and nineteen monks set out in October 2025 on a 2,300-mile walk to Washington, D.C., aiming to promote unity and compassion across 10 states in 110 days. By late December, the group had reached Atlanta. Updates on their journey are shared via a live Facebook tracker and social media posts, inspiring communities along the way.
Local: 80 words (30%), National: 189 words (70%), International: 0 words (0%)