Residents raise suggestions for ongoing issue

It’s a sigh of relief for Douglasdale residents after a sewage leak that had them going up and down finally got fixed after two months. Although this may come across as good news, the residents told Fourways Review that they are not holding their breath because the same sewerage pipe might burst anytime soon.

They said this is due to the fact that the wastewater collection system materials have been degraded.

For two months, France Bhume had to tolerate the stench that came from the sewerage spills just down the road which also leaked into the Klein Juskei River.

Bhume is employed as a security guard at King’s College and Preparatory School. He said going to work became a mission for him when he thought of the stench throughout the day.

“It is just here. It was not easy at all to spend the entire day with an awful smell. We got worried that we might get illnesses because we could no longer get fresh air from the trees outside. We were affected because the smell was so bad and we had to inhale and exhale it,” he described.

Bhume began to worry about the learners. “We have many kids here who might have gotten ill too, but one of my colleagues called the municipality and reported the matter. They came to fix it but they failed because it’s busted again.”

That is the same reason Junior le Roux, who is the head of security at the school, said they are tired of temporary solutions to their ongoing concerns. He suggested to Fourways Review that the municipality should consider using up-to-standard materials for their wastewater collection systems.

“The whole system is not guaranteed because when you look at the pipes, it’s like they are made of clay. And when you look closely at the pipe, it is [apparently] cracked. There is a lot of back-and-forth stuff when we report such issues to the municipality.

“We reported the sewage leak in April, and got a reply in May, and the sewerage pipe issue was only resolved last month in June. It was blocked, and on the other side of the river, there is a manhole, and they did try to fix it but a week later, it was back to square one, and it was quite bad at the time.”

Le Roux expressed his concern for the environment, he added that the sewage has also leaked into the river which was harmful to animals.

“I know that in that river further down, people get baptised and wash their clothes, using the water from the river.There are ducks in there and other animals. So, the sewage was affecting a lot of things besides the bad smell. I think the municipality should replace the pipes and get the strong quality ones or try to move them away from the river at least.”

When Fourways Review asked Joburg Water to confirm how many times they attended to the same sewage leak on Hornbill Road outside Kings College and Preparatory School, and if there are measures to permanently resolve it, media spokesperson Nombuso Shabalala replied, “Your query was sent to the relevant depot; a response will be sent once we have received it.”

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