No water in heatwave

A concerned resident complained about the situation at Laerskool Blyvooruitzicht this week.

“The learners have to do athletics during the hottest part of the day, but there is no water at the school. The school told them to bring water from home, but many houses do not have water either,” the resident complained.

When the Herald visited the town on Thursday, 23 November, residents said that they often did not have water due to problems with the pressure. The problem has persisted for some time, and some areas, like New Village, are worse affected than others.

When the Herald visited at approximately 13:00, the temperature was about 32 degrees Celcius.

“I do not know how we survived Covid-19 because there was often no water,” one of the residents complained.

Although the Merafong City Local Municipality is supposed to supply Blyvoor with water, residents say this usually does not happen.

“They never bring us extra water for the Jojo tanks when there are water issues. Many of us blame the ward councillor because she should have let them know but did not do so.

“No one is sure they can trust or drink the water from the Jojos because the municipality never cleans them. I, for one, will not drink it because I am afraid I will get sick,” another resident complains.

The ongoing problems have caused some residents to turn up the water pressure valves themselves to try and get water to their houses. However, this upsets other residents because they do not have water when this happens.

“It is only a matter of time before someone beats those people up because many people know who they are,” the resident complains.

The Herald took the issue to the municipality on Tuesday.

“The water network has too many leaks, causing it to lose pressure on the system. The municipality delivers water in Blyvooruitzicht. To address the challenge, Blyvoor Mine should fix the water network as previously arranged. There was a previous arrangement for the Blyvoor community to pay for water, but they have not adhered to it and does not pay the municipality for any services,” said the acting municipal communications and marketing manager, Ms Nomonde Mahube.

The newspaper also asked the Gauteng Department of Education what it was doing to ensure enough water at Laerskool Blyvooruitzicht and other schools in this area. We also asked about their policy regarding learners doing athletics in the heat of the day during a heatwave.

The education spokesperson, Mr Steve Mabona, had not responded by printing time.