Hospital sewage mess a warning about what you put down the drain

Ekurhuleni metro has finally attended to the long-standing sewage spill at the Tambo Memorial Hospital parking lot.

The repair work revealed some unusual items causing the blockages to the system.
This came after hawkers selling food outside the hospital complained that, amid the outbreak of cholera in the city, they were concerned about being subjected to a river of sewage from an overflowing drain for weeks.

The Boksburg Advertiser visited the site on March 15 and spoke to the sewer technicians and the city’s communications and brand management department team on site.

Technicians pointed out that one of the underground pipes collecting sewage from the hospital and carrying it to the mainline in Railway Street was broken, apparently after foreign objects clogged up the system. The damaged wastewater pipe has been replaced.

Delayed
Responding to questions about why it took the teams a lengthy period to fix the problem, metro spokesperson Zweli Dlamini said before conducting further investigations, the sanitation crews initially made several attempts to unclog the line.
“The problem, however, persisted, hence we subsequently decided to dig up the ground to find the fault,” explained Dlamini.

Stop blockages
Clumps of foreign items, mainly wet wipes, paper towels and soft plastic objects, were found in pipes during the repair and it is believed these objects caused the pipe to burst.

Given the amount of non-biodegradable items found in the system, Dlamini warned customers against treating their toilets and drains as trash bins.
He said disposing of foreign objects clogs up and damages the city’s sewer systems and costs millions to remove and to carry out repairs to the damaged infrastructure each year.

“This type of debris does not easily disintegrate like normal toilet paper and can accumulate anywhere along the system of pipes, and eventually cause massive clogs and backups, leading to costly repairs,” Dlamini said.
Bodies
In a previous exclusive interview with the Advertiser, the water and sanitation department said workers at a treatment plant fish out thousands of tons of foreign objects.

Everything from foetuses, fully developed babies, adult dead bodies, dead animals, used sanitary products (such as wet wipes and condoms), and food waste, including bones and animal skulls, end up in Ekurhuleni’s sewage treatment works.

These undissolved materials pulled from the system are deemed the major causes of the blockages and infrastructure across the city.
The metro stated that items the sewer reticulation system is designed for are toilet waste (urine, faeces and toilet paper) and sink, basin or a bath waste (water, washing liquid and soap).

The department shared a few examples of what should not be flushed down toilets or poured down the drain. Some of them are obvious, but there are a few the city believes people think are suitable to pass into the sewerage system, but they are not.

Not suitable: Sanitary products (such as wet wipes, paper towels, pads and nappies), condoms, cigarette butts, cloth, rope, general litter, building materials, debris, grease and food waste such as fats, oils and bones.
The metro pointed out that objects that do not break down naturally have to be manually removed and disposed of – that is if they make it to the treatment plant.
All of the items mentioned should be thrown out with the trash or disposed of properly, the city said.

Also Read: WATCH: Residents sick of persistent sewage spill