Three weeks of raw sewage frustrates resident

By Thursday, Bedfordview resident Simangele Mngomezulu had waited for three weeks for the City of Ekurhuleni to attend to a blocked drain on a neighbouring vacant property.

Her frustration reached boiling point when day after day, no one arrived while raw sewage flowed into her property.

The result of the delay was that by Wednesday last week, a second municipal drain, this time on her Millard Road property, had started to overflow.

She told the NEWS that blocked drains and sewage overflow in the area were a yearly occurrence.

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“This time around, I reported the blockage at the beginning of September. It’s been three weeks and I still have raw sewage flowing into my backyard.

“I cannot open windows in my own house, the stench is unbearable.”

She added that even when contractors do clear the lines, which can usually take anywhere up to two weeks, nothing is done to remediate the sewage that has flowed onto her property.

“This happens every year and we have to wait weeks for someone to come out while raw sewage flows into our yards.”

Mngomezulu, who is a mother to a two-month-old as well as a two-year-old, said the toxic fumes from the flowing sewage poses a serious health hazard to her children and pets.

Mngomezulu said contractors from the City arrived at the neighbouring property on Monday last week but could not access the drain as rubble blocked their path.

The following day, a path was cleared and contractors told her they would be back on Wednesday to clear the line.

By Thursday morning, no one had arrived.

“On September 15 when I called to let them know that the second drain was blocked, I was told that everyone had already gone home and no one would be there to help me. This was at 14:30 and everyone had already left.”

But her problems are not unique to the street she lives in.

Her neighbour also reported a blocked line on his property on August 31. Contractors only arrived on September 10 to unblock the line.

Mngomezulu’s other concern was that three neighbouring properties were recently sold to a developer and she believes he plans to build a complex on the property.

If this was to happen, she foresees that her annual blocked lines could only get worse.

In the September 8 edition of the NEWS Bedfordview, ward councillor Jill Humphreys warned that the suburb’s infrastructure would collapse without substantial upgrades.

She said that the infrastructure in Bedfordview could not sustain its existing density, let alone any further densification.

The NEWS sent an enquiry for comment for the City of Ekurhuleni on September 16 and requested a comment by September 17.

At the time of going to print, no comment was received.

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