Burst and vandalised pipes leave communities without water
A week of ups and downs for residents of Fourways.
Some residents of Fourways have been complaining due to the lack of water supply in their areas.
They recently had an issue with a pipe they believe should have been sorted out 15 years ago on Leslie Avenue. According to Ward 94 Councilor David Foley, the pipe is an old asbestos cement pipe. “With growing pressure, the pipe becomes weaker. It was fixed on November 1 and burst again on November 2,” he said.
On November 2, residents of Fourways, Witkoppen, Craigavon and Douglasdale had no water until 19:00. On November 3 at 09:00 a resident realised that they did not have water again and called his local ward councillor David Foley. A call was logged, and Johannesburg Water reported to the scene to fix the issue. Water started flowing again at 17:00 and it was gone an hour later. Residents are worried that these little issues will escalate to a much bigger problem.
They are slowly getting back the water, the pressure is slow so they are trying to store water because they do not know when the next burst will be. “While the repairs are progressing well, the pedestrian walkway was also badly damaged by the burst pipe,” said Foley. A statement released by Johannesburg Water stated that a pressure-reducing Reducing Valve (PRV) was vandalised at the corner of Douglas Drive and Leslie Avenue on November 2, which affected the water supply.
Johannesburg Water spokesperson Nolwazi Dhlamini was approached for comment, but no response had been received at the time of going to print.
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