Residents living in Hardewyk Street share Ermelo’s woes regarding burst water pipes..
According to a resident, water pipes in this street burst continually and he says the municipality needs to replace the whole pipeline and not repair it bit by bit. He says this problem has been on going for years.
A month ago a pipe was repaired across the street from Mr William Mokgoatjana’s house and water still seeps through the ground.
In order for the municipality to repair the leak, they dug a huge hole next to Mr Mokgoatjana’s house and just left it open.
In the process, a sewer pipe was damaged and, according to Mr Mokgoatjana, the stench is unbearable. They sudddenly they had no running water last Sunday and upon investigating he discovered that a water pipe had burst again. Water flowed into the hole and the broken sewer pipe.
Mr Mokgoatjana contacted the municipality several times to attend to the problem and last Wednesday, after three days without water, he sought help at the Highvelder.
The leak was repaired the same day and the residents are grateful. However, they are concerned about the hole that has again been left unfilled, posing a danger.. The sewer pipe is also still broken.
Mr Mokgoatjana’s house is situated on the bend of the street that consists of only a narrow strip of tar and potholes and he says that the municipality does not care about residents in that area.
They are getting fed up about the absence of street lights, the condition of the street and the ever-present burst water pipes and gaping holes.
