ESSENWOOD resident Louis Aurel says that although it was once possible for him to stroll along Peter Mokaba Road with his dog, he now fears for his own safety and the safety and health of his dog as a host of issues have made a large part of the road a major health and safety hazard for residents.
In a previous edition of the Berea Mail, Aurel reported a fallen tree on Peter Makoba (Ridge) Road that had been left on the roadside for weeks on end, however, he says that is not the only issue.
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“There is a terrible sewage leak that is constantly flowing down Peter Mokaba Road, and there is the obvious stench, but also, there is the damage being caused by sewage water flowing over tar for weeks on end,” said Aurel.
The Essenwood resident says that this issue has been ongoing for years. “This sewage has been leaking into the road and running into the stormwater drain for the last two or three years. The City has come to resolve this issue many times, but it is a recurring issue. A few months back, in June, the sewage leak started again after having been fixed by the City.”
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Aurel says he was once able to take his dog for a walk along Peter Mokaba Road, but currently, there are too many issues. “There are so many of us in Essenwood who want to retire and sell our homes, but these issues are drastically bringing the value of our properties down. The sewage leak is a major health hazard and an eyesore that keeps coming back. There has to be work done to get to the root of the issue or else this will go on for years, and it negatively affects all of us.”
The eThekwini Municipality’s City spokesperson Gugu Sisilana said the City always attends speedily to sewage leaks or overflows that are reported, but the challenge they are experiencing in communities is that manholes are clogging because people dispose of foreign objects into the system. “We are appealing to all our residents to desist from doing that and to use the correct materials for sanitation purposes. We have escalated this matter to the relevant unit so they can attend to it. We apologise for the inconvenience this is causing the public, however, we are again appealing to the public to work with us by ridding our system of alien objects,” said Sisilana.
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