Municipality ignores impending disasters
Residents are worried that the electrical poles can fall on motorists or pedestrians.
Residents of the Welverdiend smallholdings worry that they, and some other residents, could soon be without electricity due to municipal negligence.
According to the residents, one of the two poles supporting the cable and the transformer is not anchored in the ground properly. The pole, situated on the sidewalk at Plot 1 just outside Welverdiend, has also cracked and split at its base, causing it to lean over and exert pressure on adjacent poles.
“This pole could easily fall during strong winds. If it does, the transformer and other poles will also come tumbling down. Once that happens, several of the plots will be without electricity. Many other residents will also be without electricity, as the municipality will have to switch it off for the repairs,” says a concerned resident, Mr Mervin Nysschens.
Nysschens says the pole has been unstable since last year.
“We have called the municipality for four months, but they just say it is not a serious problem. It will cost them a lot when everything falls, as they will also have to replace the transformer, even though it is less than two years old,” he complained on Monday.
The residents argue that the problematic pole is next to the road to the Welverdiend sewerage works, and municipal officials drive past it daily but still do nothing.
Meanwhile, the Merafong City Local Municipality had still not repaired an unstable electrical pole hanging over the road on 5th Street in Welverdiend by Monday afternoon. Both poles could easily topple onto cars or pedestrians.
Although the municipality answered our questions on Tuesday, saying they had resolved the matters, residents of the smallholdings and a part of Welverdiend still did not have electricity by Wednesday morning.
