Community members who are supplied water by the Nsikazi Bulk Water Treatment Plant in KaNyamazane have had none for the past week, and it appears as if this will continue to be the case for about six more days.
The City of Mbombela (CoM) said the river level is above the normal required one designed for the water pump station to work optimally, and that there is a silt build-up in the chambers due to the heavy rains.
Silulumanzi said the affected areas are KaNyamazane, Tekwane South, and Pienaar up to Zwelisha.
On Thursday February 17, CoM’s spokesperson, Joseph Ngala, said local divers do not have the required permits to work in confined spaces, and to exercise extreme caution, certified divers from Cape Town were sent to Mbombela.
ALSO READ: Mpumalanga health gears up to fight non-communicable diseases
According to him, the divers arrived with the required dredging equipment that would otherwise not get onto a plane in such a short notice.
“They will work around the clock to try to clear the abstraction chamber and the pump sump. In the meantime, we are also awaiting two excavators to work at the emergency pump station and Dwaleni Package Plant abstraction respectively. This should ease some pressure as the emergency raw pump station will inject at least between eight to 10 million litres into the main KaNyamazane Water Supply System, while the Dwaleni Package Plant will supply a portion of wards 33 and 32 below the KaBokweni Magistrate’s Court,” explained Ngala.
The City said a filling station for the water tankers will be reopened at the Dwaleni Package Plant upon removal of the silt, and that a few stands’ water supply will be turned on for locals to collect water. Water tankers will be provided on emergency for the hospital and communal JoJo tanks in and around villages, including the two townships, KaNyamazane and KaBokweni.
ALSO READ: Mayors evaluate flood damages in Tekwane South
“The pumps will remain off at the main pump station until inroads have been made with the removal of the sand, which will take at least five to six days (depending on the intensity of the rainfall). A technical team is closely monitoring the situation and will provide timeous updates as the planned work progresses,” said Ngala.
According to him, the floods were inevitable and the flooding of the river into the pumping station could not be avoided. “This is a design matter that unfortunately does not have a quick fix to it, other than for the river flow to return to normal for normal operations to resume. Our consumers are urged to use the available water sparingly during this time. Apologies for the inconvenience caused.”
