WATCH: Litres of water spew out from burst pipe in Morningside
Due to reservoir and pipe damage from April’s floods, a water pipe located in Morningside has been gushing litres of water for weeks.
A WATER pipe located in the centre of Morningside, in Burman Bush Nature Reserve, was damaged in the floods, and according to Morningside resident, Reg Howell, it has been spewing litres of water onto the road for the past eight weeks.
This April, the province of KwaZulu-Natal suffered the worst floods in almost three decades. The city of Durban was hit by major floods which caused powerful landslides. South Africa’s government has recorded 459 deaths due to the floods, and more than 40 000 people have been displaced due to the immense damage caused across the province.
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Additionally, massive parts of the city’s infrastructure were left damaged or destroyed. Houses were flooded and torn apart by water; a total of 4 000 houses were completely wrecked and 8 000 were left damaged. Businesses also took a hit, and roads fell apart and were ruined. Water pipes were left damaged or broken due to roads being affected and due to the force of the floodwater. The pipe in Burman Bush Nature Reserve is one of the damaged pipes.
“The water runs all the way out of the nature reserve and all the way down Burman Drive. It runs so far down from the original source of the water, inside the nature reserve, that it reaches the outer fence line of Burman Bush Nature Reserve, which will eventually erode,” said Howell.
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Howell, who lives on Burman Drive, said he noticed the running water weeks ago, and when he went to see where the water was coming from, he was shocked to see that the water pouring out from the burst pipe was completely clear and clean. “When I saw the colour of the water and how clear it was, I knew that this was clean water coming from a nearby reservoir.”
The water’s source is the Ridge End reservoir, located at the corner of Peter Mokaba Road and Trematon Drive.
“The ironic bit is that this clean water flows from the reservoir and ends up right back at the same place, in the reservoir,” said Howell.
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Howell said he has raised the issue with the Ward 27 Councillor Ernest Smith.
According to Ernest Smith, the water is from a blocked outlet from the reservoir. “Unfortunately, the homeless people, who use this area as sleepover spot, clogged the drain with all sorts of garments and other odds and ends – it also doesn’t help that there is a fallen tree blocking access to the entrance of the pump station. The Municipality is aware, and I have been in contact with the superintendent dealing with bulk water supply regarding this matter, and he has tasked a team to deal with the issue. However, they may be busy dealing with issues across the node they cover, as the damage to the water infrastructure across the municipality is quite severe,” said Smith.
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