Roadside leak in Pinetown now a cause for concern
The leak, which has been a problem since late December, has compromised the foundation of a boundary wall in Pinetown.
AFTER a month of water running through their property from a water leak on the verge, a Pinetown couple fear their boundary wall will collapse during the next downpour as its foundation has been compromised.
Morne Robins and Julie Van Wyk said the problem started on 21 November last year and they believed it to have been repaired a few days later.
Two days before Christmas, they noticed water running down their driveway again and noted the water came from the same point.
To add insult to injury, another burst pipe was located outside their driveway and, when it was repaired, the road was made level with their driveway. The rubble left over from the repair was also left on the couple’s verge.
“Now, when it rains, as the road camber is not correct, water pours down our driveway and floods through our yard, garage and pool. It then has a knock off effect on our neighbours below us,” said Robins.
Robins, who has resided at the property since 2013, noted the recent deluge on New Year’s Eve only exacerbated the problem with their boundary wall and highlighted the effect of the incorrectly repaired road.
“My concern is that the wall will be damaged and collapse from the erosion. If that goes, we will then have to fork out from our pocket to repair something the municipality should have repaired ages ago,” he said.
Van Wyk noted the area could only take so much water during a downpour before it would flood. She also noted the waste of water due to the leak.
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Ward 18 councillor, Melanie Brauteseth, noted this was a recurring issue in eThekwini and said it was due to lack of maintenance and staff shortages.
“There were numerous backlogs during the festive season due to these reasons as well as staff shortages due to Covid-19. These issues need to be urgently addressed and plans need to be put in place to alleviate these occurrences. Another problem is the delay in resurfacing, which is handled by the roads and storm water department,” said Brauteseth.
She has since contacted the aforementioned department and to restore the storm water channel to allow for the natural flow of water in the road and to remove the rubble from the verge.
The eThekwini Municipality did not reply to questions by the time of going to print.
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